Chapter 7
Ahkmenrah tried to take Larry's assurances to heart, but the confrontation had distressed him greatly, awakening old wounds that hadn't quite healed. He'd foolishly hoped the tours were a precedent for the inhabitants' accepting him; clearly, he was mistaken. Before 'retiring' for the evening, the pharaoh found himself staring at his heirloom. Could his tablet be used for evil? Could he?..
His worried didn't fade by upon his release. Almost immediately, his gaze was arrested by the tablet. Was it his imagination, or did it seem a bit darker than usual? Ahkmenrah was so mesmerized, he barely heard Teddy speaking to him. "How does the evening find you, pharaoh?"
"It finds me well, thank you, president," he fibbed. Ahkmenrah could see Teddy shuffling on his feet awkwardly, unsure of what to say next.
"Would you be interested in accompanying me on another walk? I know last night was a bit trying, but a word to the wise: try to put the incident behind you. It does not do to dwell on past mishaps, pharaoh. Show us you are the better man and move on!"
"I shall try." After all, what else could he do?
Teddy's advice worked well for the next two weeks; Ahkmenrah did his best to convince himself that the incident was minor and he should let it go. Sadly, this was easier said than done, especially when they occasionally bumped into the Puritans, who inevitably proceeded to ward against the Evil Eye.
Moving on might also have been easier if the Puritans weren't the only hostile exhibits. Most of the indigenous tribes were also wary of him, for reasons he couldn't begin to understand. Sacagawea was the only Native American who was friendly, and he suspected part of the reason was that she pitied him. Ignoring some hateful glares and mutterings, Ahkmenrah was grateful just to be free and that nobody had acted on their hostility-yet.
Strolling helped him. For his part, Ahkmenrah enjoyed walking in in the museum with Teddy, who proved to be a remarkably informative and entertaining speaker. He was content to listen to him weave stories behind the building's many aspects. Against all expectations, he was beginning to feel comfortable in the president's presence; little did he know that the feeling was growing mutual.
Meanwhile, Teddy continued watching the young king from afar. He had to admit, he had high hopes for Ahk's adaptation to museum life. He enjoyed watching him interact with the friendlier exhibits, like the miniatures, and could see Ahkmenrah hadn't gotten over his wonder at such a tiny, prosperous people. However, Teddy noticed the pharaoh's favorite place to sneak off to was the Hall of African Mammals, where he was either playing hide-and-go-seek with Dexter, or curled up among the tigers and lions.
The calm ended one evening when Ahkmenrah returned to his tomb... and couldn't help but scream.
Hearing the dreadful cry, Teddy rushed towards the tomb as fast as his legs could carry him. What frightened him the most was not the fear in the voice, but the lack thereof-all he discerned was shock and rage. He doubted Hellfire could have sounded more intimidating. What in God's name had happened?!
The pharaoh was in the middle of his exhibit, standing there clutching his fists, looking too angry to scream now. From the looks of things, he was unharmed. Sadly, the same could not be said for his tomb. The stone walls were battered, a couple of them leaning against each other in fruitless support. Many of the hieroglyphics were carved out, ruined beyond repair. Ahkmenrah's belongings were scattered all over the floor. Statues and icons lay shredded into shards, sadder than snow-white corpses. Scarlet spray paint on one of the walls read: "BEGONE, DEMON!"
Teddy could only gape at the ruined exhibit, which he only now realized was all the pharaoh had left of his old home. Who would have been depraved enough to do this? This was one of the worst hate crimes he'd ever witnessed,-in truth, the only one he had witnessed. Where were the jackals? They should have been able to prevent this carnage from happening... Unless they, too, had been destroyed. But he really didn't want to think about who could have the power to destroy two 20-foot tall bodyguards. Certainly none of the inhabitants!
Speak of the Devil, both jackals were now thundering towards them, with Larry at their heels. "Teddy, Ahk! What happened?" Larry panted as he came up to the archway. By now, he and Teddy were staring at Ahkmenrah, who hadn't uttered a peep since he'd screamed. He was staring at his sarcophagus, ironically the only item left intact, either because the intruders couldn't destroy it, or they left it as a cruel reminder of his past. This silence was more menacing than the scream... Finally, he spoke, "Whoever did this...will pay."
I know this chapter took longer to write than usual, but I think it turned out pretty well. Meanwhile, for those of you who reviewed: thank you again! :)
Pheonix: I love your new name! It sounds very majestic and powerful. Never fear, there will be plenty of Sacagawea and Teddy moments and I WILL write your idea into my story; I'm looking forward to it! :D I'll have to think about the feeling pain element, though,-in general, I try to stay as true to the movies as possible, but I will do my best to comply with your request. Stay tuned for future updates! :)
Please let me know if I make any obvious grammatical errors; another thing I try to avoid is repetition.
