AN: I am not used to writing these sort of things so please be kind to me. The characters may be a little OC but I tried to make them as much in character as possible.

I have been planning to edit this story for a couple of years now. I thought about rewriting it for a while but decided against it. I still like this story but I was a little ashamed over all the mistakes I had made and such.

Finally I do not own the characters in this.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Chapter One:

Mutual Friend

Ardeth Bay sat by a small fire in the middle of the desert, thinking about how the years had treated him. He had been guarding the tomb of Imhotep his entire life, just like his ancestors had before him. He had never expected the old high priest to actually rise from his grave, especially not in his lifetime. Yet he had, twice even. And both times Ardeth had helped bringing him back to the kingdom of death.

"He wouldn't rise a third time," Ardeth mumbled to himself as he stared at the flames of the fire. He shook his head at his own foolish thoughts. Even if it was possible for Imhotep to rise from the dead again he had nothing left to live for. He had returned to be with his beloved, Anck-Su-Namun, yet if what Rick and Evelyn had told him was true, that she had abandoned him, then he had no reason to return anymore. At least that was what Ardeth told himself. The mad high priest could surely find a new reason to return to the land of the living. It sent shivers down his spine thinking about what the high priest could and would do to the human race if he was once again awakened.

He sighed as he leaned his head back, gazing up at the star filled night sky. It was getting late and besides it wasn't like there was much to guard anymore since Imhotep no longer rested in the lost city. That was why many of the other Medjai warriors had returned home to be with their family. Ardeth hadn't even considered getting a family. His top priority in life had always been to guard the lost city, to make sure that no one found Imhotep. His whole life had been built around the high priest and now that he was defeated he found that his life somehow seemed to have lost most of its meaning and he had nothing to replace it.

"Maybe I should find myself a wife? Start a family and get myself a son to carry on my legacy," he thought. He sighed again, once again gazing up at the sky. He missed Horus. He missed the company of his best friend.

He smiled to himself as he gazed at the black mare that stood not too far away from his tent where he sat.

"Will you be my best friend now?" he asked. She looked at him with her big brown eyes, shaking her long mane, making the Medjai let out a small laugh.

Ardeth soon decided that it was time to get some sleep and crept into his tent, burying himself underneath a pile of blankets. He fell asleep almost immediately.

He was awoken again early the next morning by someone tugging at his blankets. He lazily gazed at the slightly blurry image of someone standing above him. He blinked a couple of times, the image getting clearer and clearer by each second.

"O'Connell?" he questioned as he sat up, letting the blankets fall down on his lap. The American smiled at him.

"Hey. They told me you'd be here. Of course it felt funny, me seeking you out for a change. You otherwise have a habit of just turning up whenever we're in a pitch," he said. Ardeth gazed at him with suspicion.

"What do you mean? Has something happened?" he asked. Rick looked disturbingly innocent, which meant that he, or someone in his family, had done something they shouldn't have.

"Well, let's just say that we managed to stumble upon an old mutual friend," he said. Ardeth merely stared at him.

"Are you saying you have once again awakened the wrath of Imhotep?" he asked. Rick frowned.

"Hey! We only awoke him the first time and then we didn't even know about him. The second time was not our fault and neither is it this time," he said. "We were checking out some ruins when he just suddenly appeared, fully restored and everything." Ardeth felt confused. That shouldn't be possible.

"I don't understand. Who released him and how?" he asked. Rick shrugged.

"I thought maybe you would be able to tell me that. You seemed to have full knowledge the other times," Rick said. Ardeth couldn't tell if the American was praising him or mocking him, yet either way, he didn't have time to dwell on that.

"I am afraid I am lost this time, my friend. Imhotep should not be able to return after falling into the pit that leads to the underworld. And what reason does he have to return now, when he cannot be with his queen?" Ardeth said as he and Rick got out of the tent.

"Revenge?" Rick questioned. "After all we did kill him…twice." Rick held up two fingers on his right hand as if to emphasise his point. The Medjai shook his head thoughtfully.

"No. He wouldn't go through the progress of resurrecting only for revenge. He is a very romantic person. His only reason for living was to revive his loved one," he explained, both to the American and also as a way of convincing himself. Rick rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, I heard that fairy tale before. But then what?" he asked a little irritated. Ardeth shook his head again, not knowing the answer to the question.

"Tell me exactly what happened when you saw him," Ardeth said after a while.

"Actually, Alex was the one who met with him. I only saw a glimpse of him," Rick answered. "I can take you to see him. He, Ivy and Jonathan are staying at the hotel in Cairo right now," he said. Ardeth nodded.

"Take me to them," he said as he began to pack his blankets and his tent. They both got up on their horses and rode off.