Oooh Disclaimer: I do not own the Mummy. Just writing for fun.

A/n: Thank you guys so much for the recent reviews, follows, and favorites! Enjoy the new sequel! :)

Chapter 21: Scorpions Are Poisonous You Know

Rory twisted and turned in her sleep. The nightmare in her mind continued to rise, as she tried to fight it off. She finally jolted from her makeshift bed, and looked at the end of her bed. Standing at the end of her bed were Burns, Henderson, Chamberlin, Daniels, and Beni. She froze, solid in her spot. They were gray, ominous looking, void of any color compared to Rory and the real world. Her heart was beating really fast against her chest, and for a split second, she really did believe the world had stopped.

"What do you want from me?" she dared to ask them.

They continued to stare.

But it was Beni who replied, "Death is only the beginning."

They quickly vanished into gray smoke and fog, revealing the sandy floors beneath them. She sighed, and felt the silk covers fall off of her to her lower abdomen and then grimaced slightly as she tried to move. Ugh, why did she feel like hell? She pulled the silk covers away and looked at her patched up wound. Blood had seeped through her bandages and she winced. Right. It was all coming back to her. She'd made the stupid choice of fighting those mummies with a total stranger.

She let out a tired sigh, and rubbed her eyes. She felt the darkness linger, but didn't feel like she was in any danger. She just felt awful and tired and exhausted.

And she was about to get out of her bed, until she suddenly froze again. Only this time it wasn't ghosts from the grave. This time, it was a freaking scorpion staring, coming right for her. She backed up, though had the chance to look behind her to see if there was more, but instead she picked up an empty candle holder stick and picked it up to use as a weapon. She needed to get to high ground. She looked around her surroundings only to realize that there wasn't much of any high ground, except a small makeshift dresser. It'll have to do for now. She licked her lips and turned the candlestick around to point it at the scorpion, praying it kept still enough so she can slowly climb up on the makeshift dresser.

"Please go away," she begged to herself.

Then suddenly there was a swoosh sound from the flap of her tent being open and she yelped, almost falling off of the dresser. She braced herself to keep steady. "Careful! There's a scorpion in here!"

"I was going to ask if you were decent, but I guess that's my answer," Ardeth replied, coming into the tent. He eyed her up and down. Rory was not decent, although fully clothed in her onyx colored dress nightgown, and armed like she was ready for battle.

"Careful! Scorpions are poisonous you know!"

"Only if they feel threatened," Ardeth replied.

"I feel threatened," Rory mumbled, and watched in awe as Ardeth just walked by the scorpion. The scorpion seemed to shy away from Ardeth's presence and waddle away back inside the sands and outside the tent, leaving a terrified Rory now in peace.

"How did you do that?" Rory asked in complete awe as she lessened her grip on the candlestick holder.

Ardeth gently took it away from her and set it back down in the sand. He smiled. "After a while of living out here, you get used to such creatures. You don't bother them, they don't bother you," he offered to help her down, and she placed her hand on his shoulder gently, and then hopped down onto her feet covered slippers and into his arms.

She looked up at him and smiled a bit foolishly. "Ah yes, but with my luck these days…"

Ardeth smiled at her. "How are you feeling?" He asked, and then held her gently at arms length to take a look at her.

"All right I guess. Still can't sleep. It's been days, hasn't it?" Rory asked, looking at him, and wondering how long she's been out.

Ardeth nodded. "Your dreams. Sometimes I hear your mumbles and soft cries of terror. Please tell me in detail of what you are dreaming about."

Rory chewed her bottom lip, and blushed slightly at that question. She'd much rather liked to dream about him due to the fact he was so handsome, but she brushed that aside, and shook her head. No. She was dreaming mostly about death these days.

"Spirits of those who have died under the hands of Imhotep," she replied softly. "They tell me the same thing in each dream. Death is only the beginning. It's become of a nuisance, and I want no part of it."

"You may not have a choice, Rory. I've been looking into your blood line, back at the Antiquities Museum, that date back to ancient times."

"What does that mean?" Rory demanded.

"It means we go to the Valley of the Kings," Ardeth said.

"Come again?" she asked.

"I've been doing a great deal of thinking ever since I noticed a particular spark that awakened between us. There's a temple in Abydos. It's said to be the tomb of Osiris, God of the Underworld. It seemed like you were connected to him, that's why you were able to activate those arrows. It's not mentioned much in text, in fact, it's hidden for a reason."

"Ardeth…." Rory frowned at him, unsure if she liked where this was going.

"I think you have some sort of blood ties to Osiris. Maybe even Horus. I don't know Rory but there's something about you. Maybe you're destined for something none of us can dream of, only imagine."

She blinked at him, and almost wanted to laugh at that. There's no way she was that special. Not by any means. Nope. Nope. Nope. She wasn't any of the sort.

"No," she said.

Ardeth gave her a disgruntled look. "What do you mean no? What were you going to do back in Cairo?"

"I don't know, but it sure as hell wasn't going to be this! I'm just an American. My family has Irish, English, Welsh in my blood, ok? I don't want any part of it. It's not in my blood. I was merely a belly dancer among other things!"

"Yeah, and what did they do back then? They danced-"

"Shut it," she pointed at him. "No. I'm not some dancing servant, or what have you. I do not have a destiny."

"Everyone has a destiny."

"Not this girl!" She yelled back at him and started walking out of the tent. Ardeth grimaced and turned around to rush after her. He grabbed her arm, and she whirled around only to glare at him.

"Why do you think you're attracted to the idea of the Book of the Dead in your possession?"

"Because I wanted to bring my parents back, Ardeth! That's the only reason why!" She exclaimed. "I don't want to be some special goddess or whatever you think I am because I am not."

"But you have the mark. I saw it," Ardeth said. Rory arched an eyebrow at him and felt a rosy blush across her cheeks. They suddenly felt warmer than the sun. "Um, accidentally," he said, bowing his head respectively.

"The Ankh?" She asked, knowing where it was tattooed on her lower back.

"Yes. You're a bringer of light to life," he said, knowing it just wasn't any old Ankh. "A gift to mankind and the world. The shadows are calling you to fight through it."

Rory blinked and shook her head. "No. I've had enough adventure to last me a lifetime, Ardeth. I just want to go home."

She stormed out of the tent; passing between two Medjai warriors that were placed out of her tent that made her shake her head. She passed groups of Medjai warriors dressed in their sacred robes. Some looked onward towards her as she stormed away, wondering where the nearest camel was so she can hop on it and get the heck out of here. It would be her luck she'd have some sort of blood line like that. Nope. She didn't want any of it.

"Rory," Ardeth called out to her. She heard him but ignored him and kept walking, those she was pretty sure that she was passing by the Medjai tribes now because everything else around her within the morning blue skies and the sand, everything was totally barren.

She didn't care. She was leaving. She wasn't a Medjai warrior or whatever the hell he thought she was. She wasn't anything like that. Yes, sure she thought Ardeth was handsome, but boy did she crave some real civilization right about now. She'd even take Jonathan right about now. She frowned. Jonathan. He'd know exactly what to say to her. Now how to get back to Cairo? Could she make it out on foot?

"Rory!" Ardeth yelled at her but she just waved her hand off, which was probably the dumbest idea she'd ever done because the next turn and step she took she ended up falling down a sand dune, tumbling, tumbling downward. She tried to grasp at the hilly sands but only to miss and fall on her abdomen that caused her to wince. She looked up as though she thought she heard the sound of horses neighing and their hooves shoveling in the sand. And she was about to get up but suddenly she felt heavy and dreary like the sun on her skin was too much along with the grogginess of the tumbling fall she just endured. She became dizzy and then dropped her head along her arm at the sign of a shadow looming over her.

~*TM*~

A/n: Hmm. I don't know how I feel about this chapter. Anyway, hope I got the names right! I tried to research what I could. :) Let me know if you want more. Reviews, follows, and favorites are always welcomed, loved, and encouraged!