Ardeth looked back down at Leigh as she slept. Finally, after a little bit of persuasion, she drifted off in his arms. For some reason she fought sleeping, saying she didn't want to dream anymore, she didn't want the choice anymore. Her words puzzled him greatly. He remembered her whispered words 'if I had a choice, I wouldn't'... those too puzzled him greatly. As she drifted off, he restrained the urge to wrap her up in his arms again. She needed to sleep, to rest. It would also give him the chance to talk to Sayid and Hamid both. The older man deserved at least to know how Ardeth felt about the woman Hamid considered his daughter.
Cautiously he inched up off of the bed and dressed. Casting one last look back at a sleeping Leigh, he left the tent and walked towards Hamid's tent. Looking up at the sky, he guessed it was well after the middle of the night. He sighed and moved towards Hamid's. On the way, he passed Leigh's tent. The tent flaps were untied and fluttering in the stiff breeze. The empty tent brought back to mind the attackers from earlier that day. What were they after? There were not another tribe of people like he and the Med-jai. They were not dressed like desert people. They looked to be mercenaries. But the three of them were skilled with scimitars. Ardeth frowned as he detoured into her tent. Her rucksack was still there where he'd seen it earlier, the flap not disturbed. She had put it in there, hadn't she? The icon... were they after the icon?
His frown deepened as he bent down and reached for her pack. If they were after the icon, then when they did not return with it, there would be more to come after it. Leigh was not safe as long as she held the icon in her possession. As he lifted the flap of the pack, he spied the black silk wrapped bundle she'd made of the statue with his wrapped turban. 'You cannot touch it with your bare hands...' her words came back as whispers in his ear as he lifted the bundle out delicately. '..legend has it that this statue IS Apophis imprisoned by Amun Ra. Ra chose this shape to eternally remind Apophis that Ra was this victor on their struggle. Legend also has it that if human hands touch it, Apophis will return to the mortal world. Upon such time, the Seven Plagues of Egypt will seem like a cakewalk..'
Such power for so ugly a statue. A snake being speared by Amun-Ra as he traveled on a boat.
'touch it'
Ardeth looked around. Where did that voice come from?
'touch it... go on, touch it!' The voice whispered in his ear this time. 'Touch the statue, feel that it is just a statue. Nothing will happen...'
Ardeth scowled as he re-wrapped the statue and hastily stuffed it back into Leigh's rucksack. He was in the process of putting it back where he found it when Sayid walked in behind him. Startled, he dropped the rucksack, spilling the contents all over. Among the items scattered all over the embroidered rug were the bundled statue, a small silver and blue box that Ardeth had seen Leigh holding in her hand, the hand drawn map, a journal, a brush and a few other personal items.
Sayid chuckled at a blushing Ardeth as he knelt down and began stuffing things back into the pack.
"I've spoken with Hamid, my friend. He is uncomfortable with us both now."
"Why is that Sayid?" Ardeth looked up from the pack, the silver and blue box in his hand with the tiny ropes and beads dangling from it.
"I told him that I would have no one else courting my daughter than you. He didn't like that. I think you angered him by treating Leigh like a child yesterday morning. I doubt he will forget that for some time yet."
"I was not thinking. She just... she gets under your skin, annoys you to no end with her stubbornness and arrogance. She reminded me of a child who needed to be spanked. And when she kicked me, I decided that she needed it badly. It was stupid of me, I know." Ardeth's grip tightened involuntarily on the box in his hand. The big button under his thumb clicked and a loud racket came out of the beads at the end of the ropes.
Sayid and Ardeth both stared at the slightly swaying beads. Where was that noise coming from... there? Tentatively he lifted it to his ear. Yes, it was coming from there. How had Leigh worn these things? Ardeth looked at Sayid who shrugged with a blank look on his face.
"In the ears... yes, I think she had the beads in her ears..." Ardeth blinked as the racket stopped suddenly. What'd he do to it? He turned it over and shook it a moment. He was rewarded with a softer noise coming from it. He sighed in relief and set the box down on his lap. Carefully lifting the two beads, he put them in his ears. A look of amazement came over his face as he heard music!
Sayid watched his friend and leader's face with amazement. They both sat there for a few minutes, Ardeth listening to the music coming from Leigh's silver box. When the song ended, he looked at Sayid and shook the box again. It had worked the first time...
All of a sudden, a crashing and deafening noise blasted across Ardeth's eardrums and he jumped up like he'd been stabbed with a hot poker. He clawed at his ears, trying to get the beads out. Finally, he succeeded and threw them back down next to the box. By Allah, what sort of music was THAT?! Ardeth's ears were ringing and he now had a slight ache in his head. "Remind me never to do that again without Leigh here, please Sayid? I don't want to repeat such pain."
Sayid just chuckled as Ardeth put the silver box back into the pack and hurried out of Leigh's tent.
****
Cautiously he inched up off of the bed and dressed. Casting one last look back at a sleeping Leigh, he left the tent and walked towards Hamid's tent. Looking up at the sky, he guessed it was well after the middle of the night. He sighed and moved towards Hamid's. On the way, he passed Leigh's tent. The tent flaps were untied and fluttering in the stiff breeze. The empty tent brought back to mind the attackers from earlier that day. What were they after? There were not another tribe of people like he and the Med-jai. They were not dressed like desert people. They looked to be mercenaries. But the three of them were skilled with scimitars. Ardeth frowned as he detoured into her tent. Her rucksack was still there where he'd seen it earlier, the flap not disturbed. She had put it in there, hadn't she? The icon... were they after the icon?
His frown deepened as he bent down and reached for her pack. If they were after the icon, then when they did not return with it, there would be more to come after it. Leigh was not safe as long as she held the icon in her possession. As he lifted the flap of the pack, he spied the black silk wrapped bundle she'd made of the statue with his wrapped turban. 'You cannot touch it with your bare hands...' her words came back as whispers in his ear as he lifted the bundle out delicately. '..legend has it that this statue IS Apophis imprisoned by Amun Ra. Ra chose this shape to eternally remind Apophis that Ra was this victor on their struggle. Legend also has it that if human hands touch it, Apophis will return to the mortal world. Upon such time, the Seven Plagues of Egypt will seem like a cakewalk..'
Such power for so ugly a statue. A snake being speared by Amun-Ra as he traveled on a boat.
'touch it'
Ardeth looked around. Where did that voice come from?
'touch it... go on, touch it!' The voice whispered in his ear this time. 'Touch the statue, feel that it is just a statue. Nothing will happen...'
Ardeth scowled as he re-wrapped the statue and hastily stuffed it back into Leigh's rucksack. He was in the process of putting it back where he found it when Sayid walked in behind him. Startled, he dropped the rucksack, spilling the contents all over. Among the items scattered all over the embroidered rug were the bundled statue, a small silver and blue box that Ardeth had seen Leigh holding in her hand, the hand drawn map, a journal, a brush and a few other personal items.
Sayid chuckled at a blushing Ardeth as he knelt down and began stuffing things back into the pack.
"I've spoken with Hamid, my friend. He is uncomfortable with us both now."
"Why is that Sayid?" Ardeth looked up from the pack, the silver and blue box in his hand with the tiny ropes and beads dangling from it.
"I told him that I would have no one else courting my daughter than you. He didn't like that. I think you angered him by treating Leigh like a child yesterday morning. I doubt he will forget that for some time yet."
"I was not thinking. She just... she gets under your skin, annoys you to no end with her stubbornness and arrogance. She reminded me of a child who needed to be spanked. And when she kicked me, I decided that she needed it badly. It was stupid of me, I know." Ardeth's grip tightened involuntarily on the box in his hand. The big button under his thumb clicked and a loud racket came out of the beads at the end of the ropes.
Sayid and Ardeth both stared at the slightly swaying beads. Where was that noise coming from... there? Tentatively he lifted it to his ear. Yes, it was coming from there. How had Leigh worn these things? Ardeth looked at Sayid who shrugged with a blank look on his face.
"In the ears... yes, I think she had the beads in her ears..." Ardeth blinked as the racket stopped suddenly. What'd he do to it? He turned it over and shook it a moment. He was rewarded with a softer noise coming from it. He sighed in relief and set the box down on his lap. Carefully lifting the two beads, he put them in his ears. A look of amazement came over his face as he heard music!
Sayid watched his friend and leader's face with amazement. They both sat there for a few minutes, Ardeth listening to the music coming from Leigh's silver box. When the song ended, he looked at Sayid and shook the box again. It had worked the first time...
All of a sudden, a crashing and deafening noise blasted across Ardeth's eardrums and he jumped up like he'd been stabbed with a hot poker. He clawed at his ears, trying to get the beads out. Finally, he succeeded and threw them back down next to the box. By Allah, what sort of music was THAT?! Ardeth's ears were ringing and he now had a slight ache in his head. "Remind me never to do that again without Leigh here, please Sayid? I don't want to repeat such pain."
Sayid just chuckled as Ardeth put the silver box back into the pack and hurried out of Leigh's tent.
****