Chapter Ten
The mob moved in for the kill around Rick, Jonathan, the curator, and Ardeth. Rick quickly bent down and pulled the cover off a manhole and shoved Jonathan down inside it, then jumped in after him. The curator pushed Ardeth towards the hole, "Go! Find a way! Kill the creature!" The curator ordered. The curator then turned and threw himself at the mob as Ardeth climbed down the hole.
Rick, Jonathan, and Ardeth sloshed their way down the watery catacomb, the mob pouring in behind them. Rick took a stick of dynamite out and a match and lit it before throwing it at the mob. The dynamite incinerated a large portion of the mob.
A sewer grate was kicked out of the wall. Rick, Jonathan, and Ardeth climbed out of the hole and into an alleyway. "We gotta get 'em back." Rick said.
"I'm with you, old man. No one touches my sisters like that and gets away with it." Jonathan agreed.
Rick looked at Ardeth. "You know where he's taking them?" He asked.
"Yes," Ardeth confirmed. "To Hamunaptra. To perform the ritual and to try and earn Akila's forgiveness, only in Hamunaptra would he stand a chance- it is where she was born and where she died." He explained.
Jonathan looked worried. "What if he realises Grace isn't this Akila? Would he sacrifice her like he is with Evy?" He asked concern for his sisters clear on his face.
"No, you do not understand this yet. But being blessed with Osiris' powers, Akila cannot truly die. Grace is Akila in body, her mind just needs opening. If the creature realises Grace doesn't remember him then he will try to restore her memories." Ardeth explained. He then turned to Rick, "the creature is now able to cross the desert with great haste. If he arrives before us it will be too late." He warned.
Rick smiled, "I know how to beat him to it."
Rick's solution turned out to be a single WW1 Biplane. "So what's your little problem got to do with His Majesty's Royal Air corp?" Winston, the pilot, asked.
"Not a god-damned thing." Rick admitted.
Winston looked intrigued. "Is it dangerous?" He asked.
"You probably won't live through it." Rick confirmed.
That seemed to really interest him. "By Jove, do you really think so?"
"Everybody else we've bumped into has died, why not you?" Jonathan put in. Noticing the more dangerous they made it sound, the more likely he was to agree.
Winston nodded his head, he was hooked. "So what's the challenge then?" He questioned.
"Save the damsels in distress, kill the bad guy, and steal his treasure." Rick listed.
A slow grin spread across Winston's face and then he gave them a salute, "Winston Havlock at your service, sir!"
The wind whipped at them as they flew over the desert in the biplane. Winston was in the cockpit, Rick was in the gunners compartment, Jonathan was strapped to the left wing, and Ardeth was tied to the right wing. Jonathan was screaming in fear but Ardeth had a big grin spread across his face.
Rick looked down and saw the desert below them come alive and rise up toward the plane. Winston looked over the side and saw what was coming. He laughed, threw the throttle, and put the plane into a dive. "Hang on, men!" He laughed.
The sand storm chased the diving, twisting biplane. It got closer and closer, about to engulf it. Rick looked into the sandstorm to see Imhotep's face grinning back at him. Rick grabbed the machine gun and fired away into Imhotep's giant face. Imhotep's face began to laugh, then his jaw unhinged, his mouth opening wide, and he engulfed the plane. Winston blindly fought for control, "we're going down!" He said in glee.
The biplane spun inside the blowing sand. Engines roared and the wind howled, Jonathan and Ardeth were screaming. "Here I come, laddies!" Winston laughed. The ground got closer and closer.
The biplane smashed over a dune, rolled over, and crashed upside down into another dune. The sand swirled as Rick fell out of the gunners compartment. The left wing was jammed into the dune, and Jonathan hung upside down. "Excuse me. A little help would be useful... If it's not too much trouble!" Jonathan yelled hysterically.
Rick went over to help Jonathan as Ardeth stumbled over to the gunners compartment, tearing off the gun and grabbing the spare cartridge belt before staggering away. Rick and Jonathan looked into the cockpit and found Winston Havlock dead, with a smile on his face.
The plane then started to move, the sand sinking under their feet. The three men quickly moved away and watched as the plane, along with Winston, slid under the quick sand.