Rating: PG13 prolly eventually
Author: Angel - http://www.geocities.com/ninthsaturn
Summary: The ending of the Scorpion King changed and expanded upon. The O'Connells meet up with some strange people that look very familiar. Almost too familiar.
Disclaimer: I don't own The Mummy or it's characters. But I would give a whole heck of a bunch to own Imhotep and Ardeth. ;-)
*
The imposing presense of an Anubis warrior shoving itself through one's window had the same effect as perhaps a cat, clawing at a cornered mouse with demonic eyes and larger than average fangs. Being strapped in his seatbelt - upside down - while the creature tore at his shirt wasn't exactly what Rick would term 'fun'. With a yell of frustration, he backhanded the thing, knocking it momentarily from his window. Just long enough to unbuckle his belt and fall to the ceiling with a thud. Naturally, the warrior returned with a vengeance.
O'Connell didn't have time to even consider what had happened. Moving on instinct now, he searched frantically for anything that could be used as a weapon. Beside him Michael was already down from his seat, loading a small automatic. With a howl of revenge for the blow Rick had dealth, the Anubis warrior lashed out, scratching his arm pretty badly. He kicked at the beast, trying whatever he could to knock it away.
Gun loaded, Michael pointed it and fired, startling O'Connell greatly. The creature fell back, having had it's head shot off. Heart pounding, Rick stared at the sand beneath the windshield. There wasn't really anything he could think to say, other than, "My God." Everything seemed to have happened in mere seconds.
The silence seemed to envelope them and for a moment or two Rick sat there on the ceiling, gathering his shaken nerves. A thud from the back snapped him out of his shock and he looked up, seeing the same disquiet in Michael's eyes. "Oh my God," said the voice of Izzy. He sounded unusually grave. "Rick, get back here."
Now fully realizing what had happened, Rick was afraid to turn around. But he had to. No escaping that. What he saw made his blood run cold and he cursed. Shoving himself into the back as well as he could, he hovered between two fallen friends. Both Ardeth and Jonathan were laying on the ceiling, neither moving. Rick checked Jonathan's pulse and motioned Izzy to Ardeth. Thankfully Evy's brother was alive and with that knowledge, he whipped around to Izzy.
"He's alive," the thin pilot assured, his fingers still at the Med-Jai's throat.
Rick didn't even bother with niceties. "Shake him," he said simply, turning back to Jonathan. Gripping his shirt, Rick fought the fear that washed over him and began to try and wake his wife's brother. "Jonathan," he began, his voice low but insistent. He didn't flinch. Rick shook harder, raising his voice. Nothing. Covering his lips, his mind flashed through a dozen little scenarios, none of them pretty.
A wheeze from nearby brought him to attention and he turned, crawling closer to Ardeth. The Med-Jai's lip was cut and bled and his face betrayed the pain of wakefulness, his eyes fluttering open and shut. He winced and arched at the pain, groaning as he did so. "What..." he tried to say, but couldn't.
Shaking his head quickly, Rick wrung his hands, uncertain of what to do. "Are you okay?" he asked, immediately regretting it. "Don't answer that. It was a stupid question. Save your strength." O'Connell swallowed and glanced back at Jonathan who hadn't moved or made a sound. "Do you know anything about real medicine?" he said without thinking. He looked apologetically at Michael afterwards.
The man didn't take much offence at that, but shook his head. "I fix minds, not bodies. I know very little." Michael looked into the back, his eyes visibly bothered by seeing a mirror image of himself in such bad shape. He watched as Ardeth grasped the bottom of Rick's now untucked shirt, trying to move and make himself more comfortable. He groaned as an obviously sharp pain went through him. Michael shook his head. "Don't move around, Ardeth."
Rick blinked, finding it strange to hear that voice address Ardeth as if he were someone else. "We've got to get them out of this car," he said softly, his eyes wandering to where Jonathan lay once more.
Michael held up a forestalling hand. "Ardeth, where does it hurt?"
The Med-Jai wheezed in another breath and licked his lips, wincing at the cut there. "Everywhere."
That wasn't specific enough for the pyschologist it seemed. His voice grew calmer and his expression gentle. "Do you feel numb?" Ardeth shook his head, wincing a little. "You looked a little pained just now. Does your neck hurt?"
Breathing a little raggedly, Ardeth seemed to consider it, moving his head around a little. He winced and groaned, "Yes."
Michael looked down, thinking things through. "What?" Rick exclaimed, wondering if this head doctor knew something he didn't. "What are you thinking?"
"Wait," he replied, which annoyed Rick. His attention returned to Ardeth, his voice in that same irritatingly calm voice. "Ardeth, I'd like you to try and move your arms and legs."
The Med-Jai complied, moving successfully all but his left arm. "I think it's broken," he supplied at their concerned faces.
Michael exhaled at that, looking over his past self, then around the SUV. He reached for the door handle to the side door and opened it. "I think it's safe to move him, but we should leave Jonathan right where he is for now."
Rick didn't like the sound of that. He couldn't leave him in this now claustrophobic car, injured like he was. "No," he replied simply with a shake of his head.
"Think about it, Rick. I don't know what your doctors know in this time, but you can't just move him without knowing what's wrong. You could risk paralysis, even death." He sized Rick up with evaluating eyes. "Help Izzy get Ardeth out while I check on your brother-in-law."
Unable to stop himself from again looking to Jonathan, O'Connell felt a nervous flash of pain run through his chest. Ardeth was at least awake. Jonathan...that made him very nervous. Taking a breath, he turned back to Ardeth and took one side while Izzy took the other. Together they lifted him as much as they could, being in an upside down vehicle and the Med-Jai groaned in pain. They set him back down. "What is it, buddy?" Rick asked, his concern for the fallen warrior rising.
Shaking his head, Ardeth winced and replied in a breathless voice, "My ribs. Lift carefully."
Rick and Izzy got a more stable grip on their friend. It was very slow moving, trying to get him out the small door without causing him large amounts of pain, but when they finally made it, Rick heaved a breath of relief and sat back. He looked down at his friend, who was breathing quite hard. "You don't sound too good."
Ardeth closed his eyes and panted, his fists opening and closing in frustrated pain. "I...I'll be...allright."
"This is not good," Izzy commented gravely, looking across the wounded Med-Jai to his friend. "What are we going to do?"
Rick shook his head, cursing his uncertainty. He just didn't know. "We'll ask Mike." They waited a few tense moments and Rick began to get a little angry with not knowing if Jonathan were going to be okay. Even Ardeth wasn't in very stable condition. His panting didn't seem to cease once he was settled down to rest. Rick had a bad feeling about that.
It seemed to take an eternity, but finally the psychologist crawled out of the truck. He sat down near Rick, looking his mirror over. "I've made Jonathan more comfortable, but he still hasn't awakened. I don't think we should move him until absolutely necessary."
"And when would that be?" Rick nearly spat. He was feeling restless and the prospect of sitting around the desert until someone died didn't seem very attractive.
Michael's face remained calm and collected. He watched Rick sit and fume for a moment, then spoke up. "Carrying them across the desert to Alannah and Evy would be too dangerous. Even to transport them back to the Med-Jai would be very risky." He put a hand on Rick's shoulder, much like Ardeth might have. "I'll take care of making a camp. Go for a walk and relax."
O'Connell shook his head firmly. "No, I'm going to stay here and make sure my friends are okay."
The other sighed. "You are very agitated and worried, my friend. A walk would clear your mind and the fresh air would do you good."
Rick was about to protest, but thought better of it. Perhaps a walk would help calm his nerves. Grudgingly, he nodded and pushed himself up. "Stay out of my head," he grumbled, heading out into the night. How could this have happened? A few minutes and now his friends were injured. his brother-in-law possibly barely hanging on to life. That was going to hit Evy pretty hard.
This stuff just didn't happen to the good guys. It just wasn't supposed to be. Rick looked out over the desert and sighed. What were they going to do now?
*
Evy sat there and looked between the two men that were with her. Imhotep - the new one - spoke sharply to himself in the ancient tongue about the benefits of calming down and accepting that the O'Connells were no longer his enemy. That sounded strange coming from his lips. Their mortal enemy was encouraging his past self to let go of his past hatreds. The other priest didn't seem all that keen on actually following through with any of Imhotep's suggestions. Finally Imhotep said flatly, "You'll cease trying to harm people or I'll find a place secluded to teach you the proper respect."
The priest frowned darkly at himself and raised his chin in defiance. "I will do as I see fit against those who have dared to interfere with my plans."
Switching to English, Imhotep looked to Evy and shook his head in mild amusement. "I was such a pompous fool." His dark eyes scanned the area. "I hope Nefertiri and your child have not gotten themselves into trouble."
"You call her 'Nefertiri'," Evy observed, also wondering where the woman and her son had gotten off to. It was starting to get dark.
His ever present, quiet smile widened a little at that. He nodded. "She will always be the princess I knew back in the days of Egypt's glory. For that matter, in a way so shall you."
The other priest grunted, his distrustful eyes dark and cold. "If you are not my enemies why do you speak in a tongue I cannot understand?" he asked, his voice hard.
Imhotep gave his younger counterpart a stern glare. His eyes conceded, however. "We will speak the ancient language then."
Evy examined her nails absently, shivering a little in the cooling air. She was quite curious to know why Imhotep had changed. "How did you meet Alannah?" She couldn't fathom how he could have seen her as anything but an enemy.
The future Imhotep grasped at a canteen, screwing off the cap. His eyes had a find of fondness in them as he undoubtedly thought back upon the events. Such a friendly and caring expression for so cruel and cunning a man. He drank from the water and looked at Evy with a glimmer in his eyes. "She woke me as you did. In the original past your husband defeated both myself and the Scorpion King. I again was sent into torpor, but this time by choice."
"You chose to let yourself sleep?" the priest asked his elder, the hatred only partially hidden from his tone.
Imhotep nodded once. "I had nothing to live for by the end of what transpired at Ahm Shere. O'Connell and I both, side by side, held to dear life at the edge of a break in the floor. O'Connell shouted for Evelyn to leave the shattering pyramid, but out of her love she risked all to save his life. In my selfishness I cried out to Ancksunamun to save me and in hers she left me to die. It was then I realized that it had all been for nothing. I had disobeyed even the gods for this woman and was betrayed."
The robed priest looked away, obviously bothered by this story. Evy remembered back at the Hall of the Scorpion King she had run to Rick to save him from the tall brute that was heading towards him. Imhotep had yelled for his lover to aide him and she'd chosen to run instead. Fate wouldn't allow them to escape that, it seemed. She let her eyes slid to him and he scowled, turning his face away from them both. She looked back to the future Imhotep. "Please, continue."
"It wasn't until nearly seventy years had passed that your incarnation would make the same mistake you had," he began again, his tone soft in remembrance. He held his hands out to the fire. "When I awoke to see your face once more, I decided to try a different approach. There was no reason for me to fight, I had nothing to fight for. I was intrigued that you would dare to raise me voluntarily, knowing what I might do to you at full power once more."
He smiled. "When she asked in a frightened voice what I was, I then knew that it wasn't you. It was yet another incarnation of Nefertiri. "I told her my name and enough of my story that she would understand what I was. Nothing more. She helped me find a way to regenerate without having to kill innocents and asked me if I knew of the Scorpion King. I helped her fight him and continue to this day in that struggle."
Evy opened her mouth to comment, but was silenced by a voice. "Sorry," Alannah called out, heading towards the camp with Alex in tow. "We were having such a good time and..." The woman stopped and looked between the two priests. Suddenly her face became very angry. Alannah broke into a run, shouting, "Imhotep! You stupid son of...what...what are you doing here?" Apparently someone had been told to stay home.
Imhotep grinned and stood up, walking to meet her. "Nefertiri," he greeted, throwing his arms around her and pushing her to the sand where he kissed her at length. Widening her eyes a little at the sight, Evy turned her head and saw the other priest's eyes ablaze in both shock and fury.
"You stupid idiot," Alannah murmured, slapping Imhotep's shoulder. Evy glanced over and saw her very worried eyes. "We told you to stay back in our time. If the Scorpion King..."
Imhotep kissed her lips, hushing her mouth. "The danger is real, but did you truly really believe I would stay away and leave you in danger?" he soothed, rubbing her hair from her face. He sat up, pulling her with him. "I will fight by your side."
Frowning, Alannah shoved him back into the sand. "I have Michael with me."
He shook his head and sat up once more. "Not good enough. If it is not me protecting you, it is no where near good enough." Imhotep furrowed his brow as tears began to run down her cheek.
Getting up, she wiped her cheeks and said, "You don't understand. You just don't understand." And without another word, Alannah stormed off into the darkness.
Alannah's Imhotep looked slightly shocked and hurt. "Alex stay here," Evy said, standing from her spot.
The boy paled slightly, looking at the two Imhoteps. "Mom, you can't be serious! Bloody one for a week was bad enough!"
Evy shook her head and motioned him away. "They won't hurt you. I'm going to talk to Auntie Alannah." She gave her son a reassuring pat and headed towards where Alannah had stormed away. When Evy found her, she was sitting on the desert floor, tears streaming down her cheeks. Evy crouched down. "What's wrong? Does Michael know that you and Imhotep...?"
Alannah wiped her cheeks and looked at her counterpart. She nodded sadly. "I woke Imhotep and shortly after, fell in love with him. Michael and I had been best friends...and when he found out about Imhotep and I, he confessed his love for me. I loved him too. I guess I loved them both and couldn't decide. It was Imhotep that suggested I could have them both. Michael was against it at first, but decided that if he could have me that way, it was better than not. But that isn't why I'm upset. Imhotep's in grave danger, Evy. The Scorpion King knows a spell that could send Imhotep into what we call 'final death'. It means he cannot be resurrected again if the spell is done."
Final death. Evy'd never even fathomed that were possible where the creature was concerned. If they had done that the first time Imhotep had been awakened then none of this would have happened. Alannah would never have fallen in love with him either. The priest must have some redeeming qualities about him if in the future he could fight on the good side. She didn't know what to say, so instead took her hand and squeezed it. "Talk to him," she suggested. "He looked pretty hurt when you walked away."
Nodding, Alannah stood up with Evy. "You're right. It was rather rude of me to walk away, wasn't it? After all, he did come to protect me." The young, blue-haired girl smiled and wiped her face. "And since Imhotep brought his car, we should go and help Michael and your husband."
*
Hey guys! Thanks for the reviews!! :D Yes, actually, we will get to meet Future!Rick. :D Idn't that lovely? ;D Thanks Chianna, Lula, Buffelyn and Marcher! I'm glad you guys are reading!! :D And Buff, thanks for the non-hatred...it would not be happy otherwise! Try not to go too nuts. :D hehehe. And Lula...interesting idea...I'll have to consider it for the future...hehehe. But at the moment...:O
Anyhow, enjoy!
Angel