Everyone turned to see one man in black robes standing with his scimitar drawn at the ready. His face was set in a deep scowl as he looked over the group of men assembled. Ardeth's eyes swept the cavernous room quickly, getting a layout of the place. The dead bodies from the day before were gone, probably thrown into the viper pit at the edge of the room. Leigh was seemingly unconscious and shackled to a pillar out of the way. If fighting broke out, she was an open target. If only Sayid were here...
Sayid stepped beside Ardeth and drew his own scimitar. He'd followed Ardeth after realizing that there was a trail of odd shaped footsteps in the sand leading from Leigh's tent to the entrance to the temple ruins. He'd sent word out to the riders through Horus that they were to come to the ruins as soon as they received the message. "Help should be here shortly my Leader." he said in a hushed tone.
"Shukran Sayid." There were not many men, and he and Sayid could easily take them all on. But there was the Leigh factor to be dealt with. Without her being conscious to fight off an aggressor, she was bait. Neither he nor Sayid wanted to give them that option. So, they held their ground a moment before edging over to where Leigh was.
As Sayid kept his watch on the men, Ardeth knelt down and checked her for a pulse. He found a strong one despite her appearances. Briefly she mumbled something before passing out again. This was not good. Shouts coming from down the hallway drew his and Sayid's attention.
It also spurred the High Priest. Swiftly he reached out to put his hand on the icon. A shot rang out and the statue bolted up off the Altar, sending the High Priest scrambling for cover. Both Sayid and Ardeth glanced over to see Hamid standing in the entrance to the Chamber with one of Leigh's guns in his hand. He nodded to them as more of the Med-jai came in. They went on the offensive against the acolytes as Hamid rushed over to Leigh's side. While he worked to release the shackles, Ardeth left the fray to hunt down the High Priest and the icon.
Briefly Leigh came to as Hamid jiggled her. "Humm....ohh.... my jaw... call the orthodontist, will ya Hamid.." she sagged against Hamid as he fiddled with the locks. "Don't.. let him touch..."
"Shush Walad. Let them deal with the threat."
"No, Hamid... the statue. Can't... touch it... the Altar..."
The High Priest still had the length of black silk in his hand as he crawled along the ground towards the Altar. The icon had to be somewhere around here. All he had to do was touch it and this would be a won fight. But where had it jumped to?
A scuffle of booted feet kicked the icon across the chamber. Ardeth followed the glitter of gold as it skittered across the sandy stone tiling of the ground. Hastily he swiped his scimitar through the bodies, careful not to injure his own people in the process. He had to get it before the Priest did.
Hamid had almost freed the second of the locks when he froze, his eyes wide. Leigh looked up at him to see his lips moving slightly. "Muta'assif Walad..." he whispered as a trickle of blood seeped down his chin. With a whisper, he slid to the floor. Behind him was the High Priest holding a bloody dagger. Leigh tried to move away, but she couldn't move fast enough. The best she could do was get to her feet before he grabbed hold of her.
"Call them off imra'a."
"Go to hell."
He pressed the dagger into her neck, drawing a thin trickle of blood. "Call them off!"
Leigh stifled a scream, her hands grasping at the arm holding her across her shoulders. His hand had her upper arm right where it'd been sutured up the night before. "N... NO!" she hissed out.
"Very well then." He shifted his grip on her, dropped the dagger and pressed his fingertips into the middle of her back against her spine.
Despite her best efforts to remain silent as the shattering pain ripped up her spine, she screamed. The scream was loud enough to echo off the rounded cavern walls and instantly halt the fighting.
Ardeth had just located the statue and was about to pick it up with the edge of his robes when the scream halted him. He spun around, his eyes coming immediately to Leigh and the High Priest. She looked to be in tremendous pain at the hands of the man holding her. An anger like he'd never felt before rose in him, choking him with the bitterness of the bile. The crowd of people parted between him and the High Priest.
"Give me the icon!"
"Don't.... don't do it!" Leigh's cry was answered by another stiff jab of his fingers into her back, causing her to cry out in pain again. "Agab MuHibb... la'imil..." she whispered.
Ardeth stepped forward as Leigh seemed to sag against the Priest. She desperately needed him and he was arguing over a damned statue. But she had pleaded with him to not give the statue up. "Let her go."
"With what promise?" the Priest hissed. "I keep her, you give me the statue. We trade, yes?"
Ardeth looked at Leigh, she at him. Her eyes begged him not to do it. But he couldn't look her in the eyes, see the pain she was in and not do what he could to ease that pain. "Yes."
Leigh felt her heart sink as he said yes. She also felt something press into her leg. Her eyes drifted down over the Priest's arm to the ground. Hamid was there, pressing the dropped dagger into her hand. Slowly she took it from him. Poor Hamid... she was seeing the life seep out of his eyes as he slumped back to the ground.
Ardeth took a step forward towards Leigh when some movement near her caught his eye. Flicking a look between her and Sayid not more than a few feet from her, Ardeth threw the statue towards the viper pit. Leigh took the advantage and drove the dagger into the Priest's thigh, twisting it sharply. This time it was the Priest who's scream echoed off the walls of the Chamber. Instantly the Med-jai warriors spurred into action and cornered the acolytes before they could resume the struggle. Leigh fell back to the ground as the Priest let her go and fell to the side. Ardeth rushed to her side even as she reached for the pistol in Hamid's hand. Ardeth's scimitar came down in one swift blow to sever the chain of her shackle.
"Hamid..." she whispered. As best she could, she pulled the only father she knew now into her lap. He was already dead, but still she needed to hold him. Ardeth watched her silently as the rest of the warriors led the acolytes out.
The Priest inched himself along the ground towards where the icon had landed. It was inches from the edge of the pit. It was within his reach... just a bit more and Apophis would come to reap revenge...
"Did you mean it Harami?" Ardeth whispered. He needed to hear the words. Gently he pulled Hamid from her lap and helped her up.
"MuHibb?" she asked.
"Aiwa."
The Priest began laughing as he stretched out, his fingertips just barely within reach. A coldness began seeping though the Altar Chamber. Leigh snatched Ardeth's scimitar from his grasp and flung it at the icon. The kris-blade flipped tip over pommel repeatedly before impacting with the icon in an echoing shatter. The Priest screamed as the statue teetered off the edge of the pit down into the writing mass of serpents.
Slowly the statue and Ardeth's sword both sank down into the snake bodies as they moved and shifted, like quicksand devouring an unwitting victim. Unless someone was brave enough to venture down into that pit, the statue would remain out of human hands for the rest of eternity.
"You have not answered my question, my Harami. Did you mean what you said?"
--
Shukran = Thank You
Walad = Child
Muta'assif = I'm Sorry.
Imra'a = woman
Agab = Please
MuHibb = Lover
la'imil = do not
(( I had to take some stretch of liberty here with this phrase. My source for Arabic translation does not cover contractions and such. ))
Aiwa = Yes
****
Sayid stepped beside Ardeth and drew his own scimitar. He'd followed Ardeth after realizing that there was a trail of odd shaped footsteps in the sand leading from Leigh's tent to the entrance to the temple ruins. He'd sent word out to the riders through Horus that they were to come to the ruins as soon as they received the message. "Help should be here shortly my Leader." he said in a hushed tone.
"Shukran Sayid." There were not many men, and he and Sayid could easily take them all on. But there was the Leigh factor to be dealt with. Without her being conscious to fight off an aggressor, she was bait. Neither he nor Sayid wanted to give them that option. So, they held their ground a moment before edging over to where Leigh was.
As Sayid kept his watch on the men, Ardeth knelt down and checked her for a pulse. He found a strong one despite her appearances. Briefly she mumbled something before passing out again. This was not good. Shouts coming from down the hallway drew his and Sayid's attention.
It also spurred the High Priest. Swiftly he reached out to put his hand on the icon. A shot rang out and the statue bolted up off the Altar, sending the High Priest scrambling for cover. Both Sayid and Ardeth glanced over to see Hamid standing in the entrance to the Chamber with one of Leigh's guns in his hand. He nodded to them as more of the Med-jai came in. They went on the offensive against the acolytes as Hamid rushed over to Leigh's side. While he worked to release the shackles, Ardeth left the fray to hunt down the High Priest and the icon.
Briefly Leigh came to as Hamid jiggled her. "Humm....ohh.... my jaw... call the orthodontist, will ya Hamid.." she sagged against Hamid as he fiddled with the locks. "Don't.. let him touch..."
"Shush Walad. Let them deal with the threat."
"No, Hamid... the statue. Can't... touch it... the Altar..."
The High Priest still had the length of black silk in his hand as he crawled along the ground towards the Altar. The icon had to be somewhere around here. All he had to do was touch it and this would be a won fight. But where had it jumped to?
A scuffle of booted feet kicked the icon across the chamber. Ardeth followed the glitter of gold as it skittered across the sandy stone tiling of the ground. Hastily he swiped his scimitar through the bodies, careful not to injure his own people in the process. He had to get it before the Priest did.
Hamid had almost freed the second of the locks when he froze, his eyes wide. Leigh looked up at him to see his lips moving slightly. "Muta'assif Walad..." he whispered as a trickle of blood seeped down his chin. With a whisper, he slid to the floor. Behind him was the High Priest holding a bloody dagger. Leigh tried to move away, but she couldn't move fast enough. The best she could do was get to her feet before he grabbed hold of her.
"Call them off imra'a."
"Go to hell."
He pressed the dagger into her neck, drawing a thin trickle of blood. "Call them off!"
Leigh stifled a scream, her hands grasping at the arm holding her across her shoulders. His hand had her upper arm right where it'd been sutured up the night before. "N... NO!" she hissed out.
"Very well then." He shifted his grip on her, dropped the dagger and pressed his fingertips into the middle of her back against her spine.
Despite her best efforts to remain silent as the shattering pain ripped up her spine, she screamed. The scream was loud enough to echo off the rounded cavern walls and instantly halt the fighting.
Ardeth had just located the statue and was about to pick it up with the edge of his robes when the scream halted him. He spun around, his eyes coming immediately to Leigh and the High Priest. She looked to be in tremendous pain at the hands of the man holding her. An anger like he'd never felt before rose in him, choking him with the bitterness of the bile. The crowd of people parted between him and the High Priest.
"Give me the icon!"
"Don't.... don't do it!" Leigh's cry was answered by another stiff jab of his fingers into her back, causing her to cry out in pain again. "Agab MuHibb... la'imil..." she whispered.
Ardeth stepped forward as Leigh seemed to sag against the Priest. She desperately needed him and he was arguing over a damned statue. But she had pleaded with him to not give the statue up. "Let her go."
"With what promise?" the Priest hissed. "I keep her, you give me the statue. We trade, yes?"
Ardeth looked at Leigh, she at him. Her eyes begged him not to do it. But he couldn't look her in the eyes, see the pain she was in and not do what he could to ease that pain. "Yes."
Leigh felt her heart sink as he said yes. She also felt something press into her leg. Her eyes drifted down over the Priest's arm to the ground. Hamid was there, pressing the dropped dagger into her hand. Slowly she took it from him. Poor Hamid... she was seeing the life seep out of his eyes as he slumped back to the ground.
Ardeth took a step forward towards Leigh when some movement near her caught his eye. Flicking a look between her and Sayid not more than a few feet from her, Ardeth threw the statue towards the viper pit. Leigh took the advantage and drove the dagger into the Priest's thigh, twisting it sharply. This time it was the Priest who's scream echoed off the walls of the Chamber. Instantly the Med-jai warriors spurred into action and cornered the acolytes before they could resume the struggle. Leigh fell back to the ground as the Priest let her go and fell to the side. Ardeth rushed to her side even as she reached for the pistol in Hamid's hand. Ardeth's scimitar came down in one swift blow to sever the chain of her shackle.
"Hamid..." she whispered. As best she could, she pulled the only father she knew now into her lap. He was already dead, but still she needed to hold him. Ardeth watched her silently as the rest of the warriors led the acolytes out.
The Priest inched himself along the ground towards where the icon had landed. It was inches from the edge of the pit. It was within his reach... just a bit more and Apophis would come to reap revenge...
"Did you mean it Harami?" Ardeth whispered. He needed to hear the words. Gently he pulled Hamid from her lap and helped her up.
"MuHibb?" she asked.
"Aiwa."
The Priest began laughing as he stretched out, his fingertips just barely within reach. A coldness began seeping though the Altar Chamber. Leigh snatched Ardeth's scimitar from his grasp and flung it at the icon. The kris-blade flipped tip over pommel repeatedly before impacting with the icon in an echoing shatter. The Priest screamed as the statue teetered off the edge of the pit down into the writing mass of serpents.
Slowly the statue and Ardeth's sword both sank down into the snake bodies as they moved and shifted, like quicksand devouring an unwitting victim. Unless someone was brave enough to venture down into that pit, the statue would remain out of human hands for the rest of eternity.
"You have not answered my question, my Harami. Did you mean what you said?"
--
Shukran = Thank You
Walad = Child
Muta'assif = I'm Sorry.
Imra'a = woman
Agab = Please
MuHibb = Lover
la'imil = do not
(( I had to take some stretch of liberty here with this phrase. My source for Arabic translation does not cover contractions and such. ))
Aiwa = Yes
****