The Gold Bracelet

by tanith2

Rick needs money and gets involved with the Germans

Disclaimers - I own no-one Rating - PG13/R Summery - Rick needs money and gets involved with the Germans just before the War.

The Gold Bracelet

"He's done what?" shouted Ardeth, turning around quickly.

"He's taken the bracelet and gone to Austria" replied Masala, his second in command.

Ardeth Bay, leader of the Med-jai, threw an object across the tent and it smashed against the tent pole. He was fed-up of baling these people out of trouble and it looked like he would have to again.

"How the hell did he get the damn bracelet anyway and why Austria, doesn't he know there is a war over there"

Ardeth was angry and worried about his friend Rick O'Connell, who for some unknown reason, not only had he found the bracelet of Anubis but had taken it to Austria. Germany had taken over Poland, Austria and threatened other countries. Of all the places he had to go. Now he wanted Ardeths help. He stormed out of the tent and getting on his horse, rode off across the desert. Some of his men came over to see what the fuss was about.

"ARDETH, WAIT" shouted Masala running towards the horses "Abdul get my horse, I think I know where he has gone"

"Where, do you want us to come with you?" asked the other man, bringing the horse over.

"I'd lay money on the fact he has gone to Cairo. No, you stay here and take command while we are gone. We'll be fine, I hope" replied the man mounting his horse.

Abdul watched as Masala rode off after Ardeth. He caught him up but they rode to Cairo in silence, the leader of the Med-jai more angry than Masala had ever seen him. They went straight to the museum where he jumped off his horse and stormed into the building.

"Where is Evy?" he demanded the curator, who stepped back at the sight of these men.

The curator was visibly scared at these two tattooed men in long black robes running into the museum. He told them what they wanted to know, just in case his life was at stake.

"Ardeth.er, she's in the office. Are you..?" he stuttered pointing to the door.

Ardeth banged open the door to the museum office and found Evy sitting down, writing some reports. She jumped up as the door flew back and nearly came off its hinges.

"What the bloody hell is Rick up too?" demanded a very angry Ardeth storming into the room.

"What on earth, what are you doing here. Rick, I haven't seen him for a couple of weeks, he is in Saccara" she said, a little scared of this new side to her friend.

"No, he is not, Evy. He is in Austria" said Masala.

"AUSTRIA, what is he doing there and how do you know this?" she asked standing up.

She made the men sit down and tell her what was going on while she poured them a drink, they looked like they needed it.

"I received a message from him, via Izzy, he has found the bracelet of Anubis and gone to Austria. Now he is in trouble and wants my help" said Ardeth taking the drink.

"Oh God, what is wrong with him, he told me he was going to Saccara for a few weeks then he would be home. I am so sorry Ardeth, I honestly didn't know about this" she replied sitting back down in the chair, shocked.

Ardeth shrugged his shoulders and put his head in his hands, not knowing what to do. He only knew the desert, he had only ever been out of Egypt once and that was to London, again to help out his friend. He had certainly never been anywhere like Austria. The news reports that he had got from the Cairo newspapers, said that the Germans had invaded Austria and that the world was on the brink of a war.

"How did he get the bracelet again?" asked Masala.

"Well, I'm afraid that was Jonathans fault. When Ahm Shere collapsed, he found it and put it in his pocket" said Evy pacing up and down again. "I didn't know about it till we got back here"

"Jonathan, I might have known, he never could leave gold alone" replied Ardeth.

"What will you do, are you going to Austria?" she asked

"I have to, I owe Rick and he is my friend, albeit a foolhardy, irresponsible son of a.."

"Ardeth, language" replied Evy "You have certainly been around Rick too long. But listen you can't go there, the war.it's too dangerous"

That produced a bit of a smile from Ardeth, he had certainly picked up a few American words that left a lot to be desired. Evy demanded that they stay for dinner, it was the least she could do. Ardeth agreed, reluctantly. She took them back to her house next to the museum. Ardeth was tired and nearly fell asleep during the meal.

"Come on Ardeth, if you are going to Austria to find that husband of mine, you need some sleep, you are out on your feet. Bob will show you to a room upstairs in the living quarters" said Evy putting an arm round his shoulders.

He tried to deny he was that tired but swayed slightly when he stood up, Bob helped him upstairs. Masala stayed with Evy.

"Masala is Ardeth alright, he doesn't look it" asked Evy.

"I think so, he hasn't slept since we left our camp two days ago. He is worried about Rick, why did he want the bracelet?" he asked her

"My husband..god when I get my hands on him, if Ardeth doesn't kill him, I will" she said, realising that she would have to tell him what was going on. She proceeded to tell him that they were broke, they had had to sell the house in London, the museum was losing money rapidly and Jonathan hadn't helped with his spending. They had been trying to raise money to just live and keep the museum going.

"I had no idea" replied Masala "You could have come to us, we could have helped in some things"

"Thank you, he must have found a buyer for the bracelet. But he knows the dangers, he could have sold anything rather than that. It should have been left there or at least stayed under lock and key"

"He must have been offered a good price for it" said Masala

"Yes" replied Evy knocking back a large brandy "but by who and what do they want with it. I knew I should have destroyed it or at least given it to you to keep safe"

Herr Flick, Hitlers second in command, had not long been back from Egypt. He had heard the stories first hand about Hamunaptra and Ahm Shere. He knew about the evil in these two places and what it all meant. But the thing that interested him more, was the story that a Rick O'Connell had the Bracelet of Anubis. Now if all these stories were true, this bracelet could raise an army, the Army of Anumis, an unstoppable force that could destroy the world. He was in bad favor at the moment with Hitler, over personal issues and he knew this information would get him back on the right track. Getting back to Berlin, he went straight to the Reichstag and asked to see the Fuhrer. He was told to wait, that Hitler would see him soon. It was about 2 hours later that he was summoned into Hitlers office.

"Well, what do you want to see me about, it had better be good" demanded Hitler.

"It is mein Fuhrer, I have found a way for you to destroy the world" Hitler laughed, "I have ways already to do this"

"Yes, but this one is infallible, unstoppable, a force more evil than you could imagine" replied the man waiting till his Furher sat down. Hitler did and listened to Flick, he owed him a hearing. Then he could send him somewhere else, where he didn't have to see him. He had had an affair with Eva after all. Flick told him about the bracelet, Egypt, Imhotep, the lot.

"I know where the bracelet is. If we can get it, you could have the army of all armies, nothing could stop them" he told him

Hitler got up and went to the window and thought about what he had been told. He was well into the occult and anything like this interested him greatly.

"How do we get this bracelet?" he asked turning back to Flick.

"This O'Connell is broke, he needs money, the right price and it is ours"

"Okay, make him an offer and arrange to pick it up. But not in Egypt, if he wants the money, make him come to us. Austria, arrange to meet him in Austria. If he's that desperate, he'll come" said Hitler.

"One more thing, mein Fuhrer, we also need the Book of the Dead. That will not cost us anything but it has to be found in the ruins of Ahm Shere"

"Why do we need that?" asked Hitler studying the mans face.

"To raise the army, the bracelet is only part of it"

"Okay, send some men to this place and get it. Let me know about O'Connell"

"Yes mein Furher, zig heil" he said clicking his heels.

With that, Flick left and ordered some men to travel to Ahm Shere to get the book. He would see to O'Connell. He arrived in Cairo a few days later and went to the hotel and asked if he was there.

"He's in the bar, Sir" said the waiter.

Flick went and saw, whom he assumed was the man he looked for, having a drink. He went over.

"Mr O'Connell?" he asked.

"Yes, who wants to know?" asked Rick turning round.

"My name is Herr Flick, I have an interesting proposition for you. Are you interested?"

Rick looked at the man, who was dressed in a black suit with a leather coat. He looked a bit sinister but Rick was always up for an adventure, as long as it didn't involve mummies again.

"Maybe, what's the deal?" Rick asked warily.

"You have in your possession, something I want and I also know Mr O'Connell that you need money urgently. With your need and my money, I am sure we can come to some arrangement" replied Flick

Rick stood and motioned him to sit at a table in the corner. The less people who knew what they were talking about, the better. If this was worth talking about. They sat down and Flick told him what he had in mind.

"I am willing or have been instructed to offer you $1 million American dollars for the bracelet, that is a lot of money Mr O'Connell"

Rick was shocked, how had found out that he had the bracelet. A million dollars, he had never seen that sort of money. But he wasn't going to rush into anything.

"What bracelet?" asked Rick not sure of what to say.

"Come now Mr O'Connell, we know all about the Bracelet of Anubis and that you have it. Don't take me for a fool, you could live to regret it" said Flick.

"Can I think about it?" he asked.

"Yes, you have till tonight Mr O'Connell, 8pm in the hotel"

He left and Rick sat there, thoughts whizzing around in his head. With that money, he and Evy would be set up for life. Evy, he couldn't tell her, she'd never agree, no matter how much money was involved. He wondered, briefly about why they wanted the bracelet but he dismissed it. It was safe now, the Scorpion King was destroyed, Ahm Shere was gone and so were the books. He decided it would be safe to sell it, the person buying it, obviously wanting it for a collection. Later that eveninig, he met Flick in the hotel lounge.

"Have you come to a decision Mr O'Connell?" asked Flick

"Yes, when do you want it and what about the money" replied Rick

"A very commendable decision Mr O'Connell" said Flick shaking his hand. "Come, we will make the arrangements"

They went into the dining room where they could be undisturbed. Rick didn't want Evy or anyone else finding out about this until it was over.

"Right, I am instructed to give you a third of the money now. You will then get the bracelet and take it to Innsbruck in Austria. Where you will be met and given the rest of the money" he said

"Austria, I'm not going there, why can't it be done here. Austria is in German hands"

"That is correct" said Flick sipping some wine. "The person who wants to buy it, is German and will arrange for you to be met there. He cannot leave the occupied country"

Rick was getting annoyed now, he gets offered money for the damn trinket then is expected to go to Austria to get it. How was he going to get away with this as far as Evy was concerned.

"Your flights will be paid for, I have all the documentation to allow you into Austria. But let me assure you, if you do not do this, our way. Well, how can I put it, your wife is very beautiful Mr O'Connell." smiled Flick

"You bastard, you hurt her and I'll kill you" said Rick in mans face.

"You understand then, how important it is for you to do as we ask. Don't you agree"

Rick found that he would have no choice if he didn't want anything to happen to Evy. Anyway, what did he care what they wanted the bracelet for, he was thinking of the money.

"Austria seems okay Herr Flick. When do I go?" he said after a while.

Herr Flick gave him a bag with the money in it and all the paperwork that he needed. He would be met by a man in Muhlau, on the outskirts of Innsbruck and then taken up to the mountains, to a remote spot and there he will hand over the bracelet and will receive the money. The transaction will be over and he could return to Egypt. Rick went back to his room, packed his stuff and put the money in the bag as well, then he went to see Evy. He would tell her that he was going to Saccara for a few weeks because of a tomb. He knew she couldn't go because of Alex.

"Do you have to Rick, I would rather you wait till I can come with you"

"I know honey, but this won't wait, it's now or never. Just think, I'll have some more things or some money for the museum. I will leave in the morning."

She agreed but insisted that she come on the next one, Alex or not. Rick couldn't say no. Going up the stairs, she told him not to be long, that she would wait for him in bed. He blew her a kiss and pretended to finish his drink. When he knew she was gone, he went to the safe in the wall, behind the picture and opening it, took out the bracelet. He made sure he never put it on though, just in case. He wrapped it in some cloth and put it in a bag. Then taking it upstairs, he managed to get it in his bag before Evy came out of the bathroom. The next morning, he said goodbye to her and headed out in the direction of Saccara then doubled back to the small airport, where the plane was waiting to take him to Austria. That was a few days ago. It would be quite a long journey, about 3 days. From Cairo, they would fly to Crete, then on to Greece, through Yugoslavia and then into Austria. From Innsbruck, he would travel with a man to Gumpenwand, in the Alps. Back in Cairo, Ardeth and Masala were making arrangements to go to Austria to Rick. They had decided to take two men with them, the more the better. As they sat in the study going over some maps, there was a knock on the door. Evy went to answer it and two men stood there in black trench coats.

"Can I help you?" she asked stepping back slightly.

"We are here about O'Connell" said one of them.

"Rick.is he okay, where is he?" she asked excitedly.

The men pushed their way in and Evy suddenly became scared.

"Your husband is in Austria, helping us. We are to make sure he doesn't go back on his word. You understand Mrs O'Connell" said the other man producing a gun.

He pointed it at Evy and she realised that she was also in danger. What had Rick got himself into. He motioned her to move. Masala heard strange voices and walked over to the door and opening it carefully, looked out into the hall. He saw the two men, one with the gun, he signalled Ardeth.

"We have problems" he said "How do we deal with this without Evy getting hurt?" he asked.

Ardeth came and looked over Masalas shoulder and saw what was happening in the hallway. He motioned Masala back in and they quietly closed the door. Evy turned towards the lounge and spotted Masala peering out of the study door, then she saw it shut.. She walked towards the room, hoping that as she went in, the two men would do something. She was followed by the two Germans who looked around to make sure there was no-one else there. Opening the door they went in. Ardeth and Masala had hid behind the door and waited till Evy was inside the room and then jumped the two men. One of them fired his gun but missed just as he was hit over the head with the handle of Ardeths sword. They both fell to the floor. Evy ran to Ardeth.

"Are they dead?" she asked.

Masala felt the pulses and shook his head. They were carried to chairs and tied up. When they came round the Med-jai would question them.

"What the hell is Rick involved in, they are here to make sure he doesn't go back on his word. Obviously if he does, they were supposed to kill me" said Evy leaning on the desk.

"Don't worry, we will find him. You take care and we will let you know what is happening as soon as we can" said Ardeth.

"Please be careful and you had better tell my husband that I am going to kill him when he gets home. I wish you didn't have to go after him" she told him.

Hugging both of them, she said goodbye and wished that they didn't have to go chasing after Rick, especially in Germany with a war going on. Masala and Ardeth didn't that much out of the men, they didn't seem to know what was going on and were only following orders. Evy got the local police to pick them up and they would spend the rest of their time in the local prison until they could be shipped out. The next day, Ardeth and Masala rode out to Izzys place, where he had said he would take them to Austria. It was the balloon again and it would take them about a week, plus he had to be a bit careful as he got nearer the country because of the occupation.

"Have you any idea what Rick has got himself into this time?" asked Izzy loading some stuff onto the balloon.

"I have no idea, what did the letter say?" asked Ardeth getting on board.

"Well, the letter was sent from Innsbruck about 3 days ago. A good friend of mine brought it. Apparently he was supposed to meet someone who was buying something off him. He has found out who the buyer was and had gone into the Alps to try and hide until he could get out of the country."

"I can understand that with what is going on over there" said Masala "But why did he want the Med-jai to get involved"

Izzy gave him a letter that had come with the other one and one that was only to be given to Ardeth when he was on the balloon. Rick thought he might not come otherwise. Ardeth read it and then, turning pale, walked to the end of the balloon.

"What was in that letter?" asked Masala.

"I have no idea, but whatever it was, Ardeth wasn't expecting it" replied Izzy.

Masala went over to where Ardeth was leaning on the side of the balloon, his head resting on his arms.

"Ardeth, are you alright, what did Rick say?" he asked putting a hand on the mans shoulder.

"Allah save us, Masala, he has found out that the buyer of the bracelet is none other than Hitler himself. He wants it to raise the Army of Anubis and use it to take over Europe and any other country, the world in fact. When the letter was written, he was hiding in a hut, half way up a mountain. Damn that man, why can't he live like normal people and leave these things alone" said Ardeth

"Come Ardeth, get some rest, we can do nothing till we get there. It will do no good worrying about it yet"

Ardeth put his hand on his shoulder and told him to leave him, he wanted to think, he would be alright. He would sleep later. Masala sighed and left him alone, going to where beds had been made at the other end of the balloon. A while later, Izzy called Ardeth over and handed him a coffee. He sat down beside Izzy and gazed into the mug.

"You're worried aren't you?" he said.

"Yes, the man is a pain sometimes, always getting himself into trouble and then expecting others to bail him out. No, that is not all true, he is a brave man albeit reckless. I owe him many things, if it wasn't for him, we would have lost many hundreds of men at Ahm Shere." said Ardeth

"Well, if I get shot, because of Rick O'Connell, I will personally kill him myself. Who was the buyer anyway?" said Izzy smacking his fist into the other hand.

Ardeth got up and walked over to where his bed was, then turning he looked at Izzy.

"Hitler, Izzy, Hitler is the buyer" he replied

Izzy watched Ardeth settle down on the bed, just laying on the top of it and he walked back to the wheel of the balloon.

"Hitler..maybe this time, we're all going to get shot" he whined loudly.

When Rick arrived in Innsbruck, he was quite shocked by what he saw. Everywhere were flags with the Swastika on them. He had heard about Germany invading this country but he didn't realise the extent till he got there. He left the airport and got a taxi to the hotel, there he was supposed to be met by someone. Checking into his room, he washed up and then went to the dining room to get something to eat. He decided not to drink while he was there, he needed his head clear. Surprisingly he found he could understand the language quite well, he spoke German anyway and mostly the people he dealt with so far were German speaking. Two days later, he was getting worried, there had been no sign of anyone meeting him. He made up his mind that if no-one had turned up by the next day, he was going back to Egypt. He didn't like it there, the whole place gave him the jitters, even more than Hamunaptra. At least there, he knew what he was facing, here, he had no idea. That evening, a man came into the hotel, dressed in a military uniform and looked very important. The staff couldn't do enough for him. Rick saw him but then carried on reading the paper. A few minutes later.

"Mr O'Connell?" asked the man, clicking his heel together.

"I'm O'Connell and you are?"

The man stood in front of Rick and looked very imposing, he thought and very sinister. Rick wasn't used to the German thing yet.

"My name is Kettall, Yohan Kettal, I have come to take you to the rendezvous point, where you will receive the rest of the money in exchange for the item we are purchasing"

"When do we leave, I want to get back to Egypt?" asked Rick

"I understand Mr O'Connell. We leave in the morning. By the end of the week, you should be on your way back" said the man

The man sat down and ordered a drink, Rick didn't like him, something about him wasn't right.

"Can I ask you a question Mr Kettal?"

"Yes Mr O'Connell, you may" replied the man.

"Who is the buyer of this bracelet and please call me Rick" he said trying to make the situation a bit more pleasant.

The man shifted in his seat, it wasn't the question he had expected and looked around before he answered.

"Well, I thought you knew, I thought someone had told you" he said

"No, no-one has told me anything except how much I get and where to go"

Kettal looked around again, nervously and then leaned forward so no-one could hear him speak.

"Hitler, Adolf Hitler is the buyer. The Fuhrer himself wants it" said Kettal proudly.

"Hitler, what the hell does he want it..Oh my God, he knows all about it, what it is and what it does, doesn't he?" stormed Rick

"Yes Rick, he wants to rule the world, the bracelet will secure that"

"No, no way" said Rick getting up "There is no way he is getting it, not for that purpose. I've seen what this thing can do, we lost a lot of friends destroying this thing and no-one, not even Hitler is going to get it"

"Mr O'Connell, I don't think you have any choice" the man replied pulling out a gun and pointing it at Rick.

Rick looked down at the gun and then at the man, he sat down. He was in the shit, well and truly. How the hell was he going to get out of this and why didn't he think before he agreed. He should have at least asked first who wanted it. The fact that they wanted the bracelet would have told him something, but he was more interested in the money. He was becoming like Jonathan, greed, gold and money.

"You need the black book as well, the bracelet is useless without it now" he said suddenly remembering something.

"No problem, by now, we will have the book, men are getting it even as we speak. So you see Rick, everything is going to plan. You have a wife, I understand, she will be seeing some of our men, if you don't co-operate" he said.

Rick knew, at least for the moment he would have to go along with Kettal, he didn't want anything to happen to Evy, because of his stupidity. What he needed was the Med-jai, but this was Austria, not the desert.

A group of about 10 men had left for Ahm Shere. They had paid one of the Med-jai, a man who was easily led when it came to money, to take them to the place. When they arrived, all they found was mounds of sand where the place was but after digging for a day or so, they found the top of the pyramid. It had not been destroyed, only sunk into the desert. Using dynamite, they blew the top of the thing and it revealed an opening, big enough for a man to climb down. With ropes, 6 of them went into the pyramid and left the other 4 outside, just in case they had company. As they made their way through the pyramid, they found some parts were blocked with rubble which had come down at the time. They soon arrived at the bottom, where they found some of the gold relics, broken but none the less, there.

"Look at this" said one of the men "It's solid gold"

He held up a golden goblet laying next to other things on the floor.

"I think we will take some of this, we can sell it" replied the leader of the expedition.

They put some of the stuff in their bags, remembering the men outside. There was plenty for all. They spent several hours in the pyramid and then Claus, the leader shouted to the others.

"I've found it, it's over here" said the other man digging under a pile of sand.

Brushing the sand off the book, they wrapped it up with the key, what was laying beside it and put it in a bag, especially brought for it.

"Right, let's get out of here" he said.

As they were leaving, the whole place started to shake and they had to run. Large pieces of rock fell down and one of the men was killed as he ran along the tunnel. By the time they got to the entrance at the top of the pyramid, only 3 of them were left.

"Pull us up, now" shouted Claus.

The men outside pulled their comrades up as quickly as they could. They had felt the quake and when everyone was out, they mounted their horses and galloped off, not stopping till they were a good distance away.

"That place is cursed" said Claus "Let's leave here as quickly as we can and get rid of the book back in Germany"

Rick and Yohan Kettal drove for about three miles and then they would have to travel on foot. It would take about 2 days to get to Gumpenwand with the Germans soldiers about and the snow. Kettal did not want anyone to know what they were doing there, even though they had orders from Hitler. Just before they left, Rick managed to get a letter sent to Izzy who would try and get word to Ardeth about where he was or at least where he would be in a few days. He knew what Ardeth was going to say but he hoped that he would come and help him regardless. They could argue when they got back at how stupid Rick was being. And he thought only Evy did really stupid things, boy this beat them all. It was about 12 miles on foot to Gumpenwand and by the time they got there, they were both frozen with cold. Kettal had made sure that the gun he held was always in view just in case Rick decided to try anything. But after what the man had said about Evy, he thought it would be better if he went along with the man for now. They reached a disused barn and Rick was told to make something to eat and drink.

"Won't we be seen if a fire is lit?" asked Rick.

"Not at this time of day and it can be put out as soon as we have finished. Now get on with it. I have to use the radio up in the hay loft to contact the other man who will bring your money. Once that is done, you are free to go" said Kettal.

The man went up the ladder and Rick could hear him speaking on the radio but couldn't quite make out what was being said. He understood a bit of German but not that much. He lit a small fire near the door and put some water in a pot to boil. "You know what to do" said the voice on the other end of the radio "Once the deal has been done, you will kill him. No-one must know about this"

"Ya voll commander" said Kettal "When will I be picked up with the bracelet?"

He turned and looked down at Rick.

"Tomorrow morning, you and Von Brown will be picked up by a patrol car at the pass. Then you will be taken to Hitler" he said

They signed off and Kettal put the radio back in its box and hid it under the straw. It would go with them tomorrow. He went down to where Rick had finished making the coffee.

"A man called Von Brown will be here in a couple of hours. Then it is over for you and we can get on with our job. I suggest you get some sleep, I will wake you when he arrives"

Rick nodded and went to lay down in the straw at the back of the barn. He couldn't get the words 'then it is over for you' out of his mind. It seemed a strange thing to say when he was going back to Egypt. Suddenly it dawned on him that he was not going to get out of this alive. They were going to kill him once they had the bracelet. He had to try and get out of there as soon as he could. There was no way he could take on two of them, so he would have to deal with Kettal before the other man arrived. Going back to where the coffee was, he told Kettal that he needed another drink then he would sleep. The man nodded and let him carry on. Looking round as he drank it, he saw a spade standing against the back of the door. If he could get that, then deal with him. Casually walking over till it was behind him, he kept his eyes on Kettal. The man was looking out of the door and wasn't really watching what Rick was doing. He didn't see him pick up the spade from behind and then slowly walking behind the man, he brought the spade round. Kettal turned round just as the spade came down, hitting him on the temple. He fell to the ground, blood pouring from the wound. Rick knelt down and felt his pulse, he was dead. Dragging him across the barn, he hoisted him over his shoulder and carried him up the ladder to the hay loft. He buried him under the straw, making sure there was no tell tale signs of blood leading to his body. He took the radio from its hiding place, just in case he could use it. Also he took the mans gun, ammunition and any paperwork that he had. He might be able to use that too. There was a map in the mans pocket and looking at it, he worked out a route away from the barn. Von Brown would be there in about 30 minutes, so he had to get away before he arrived. Somehow he had to leave a message in case Ardeth did manage to find him or even come out there. If he left the door open, he thought, he could leave a note on the back of the door in Egyptian. He knew enough to write a brief message in a sort of cryptic way that he hoped Ardeth would understand. He wrote the name of the place he was going to, Hirschkopf and prayed that no- one would decipher it. Making sure he had the bracelet securely done up in his bag, he left the barn and walked towards the trees on the left of the place. He used a stick to brush any footprints away from the direction he had gone. Luckily for Izzy, his balloon didn't make any noise when he didn't want it too and they managed to get to Insbruck or at least just outside quite easily. They landed in the woods just outside Muhlau and made their way to the hotel that Rick had told them about in the letter. Ardeth had put on some European clothes while he was in the town and left his robes on the balloon. He hoped that no-one would see the tattoos and start asking questions. They found the hotel and Izzy asked if there were any messages from Rick. The manager looked behind him and took out a letter and handed it to the man. Izzy thanked him and they left. The manager was a bit suspicious but then he was called to the counter and forgot about it. Going round the corner where they couldn't be seen, Ardeth opened the letter and read it. Rick had told them where he was heading and about the men going to see Evy, which they already knew about.

"Right, let's get back to the balloon and then try and find this Guppenwand and hope that Rick is still there" said Ardeth.

"Do we go in the balloon?" asked Izzy

"No, we will cover it up and hope no-one finds it. We will go on foot, there are too many soldiers around so we will have to be vigilant" said Ardeth.

Getting back to the balloon, they changed into their own clothes and collecting wood and leaves, covered the balloon as best they could. Ardeth told the two men who were with them to guard it well. Once that was done, they started on the journey to Guppenwand. All of them were armed and Izzy continued the same thing about getting shot. Ardeth and Masala laughed as they walked off. It was getting dark and they knew they would have to rest for a while and keep out of sight. They could easily lose their way. Finding a clearing in the woods, they settled down just under the trees so that they could see or hear if anyone came past.

"God its cold" said Izzy "Never been this cold before. Rick is going to get a piece of my mind when we find him"

"Look, you two lay together and cover yourselves with the coats while I keep watch, then we will swap" said Masala.

The two other men agreed and tried to get warm under the coats. It was hard but they soon fell asleep. In the end Masala fell asleep as well but luckily no-one came anywhere near the woods that night. The next morning, they carried on towards Guppenwand. It was bitterly cold, the frost lay top of the snow and made the trees look even whiter. The sun was beginning to rise but it wasn't warm like they remembered it in Egypt and would have done anything to be there at the moment. As they reached the barn, they made sure their guns were ready just in case there was anyone there. Creeping up round the back of the barn, they heard a man talking in German on a radio. He seemed to be alone so they would creep round to the door, Izzy was told to stay behind the barn till they called him.

"I wonder what he is saying" said Masala trying to hear.

"He is telling whoever that Kettal has been killed and O'Connell has gone. He is saying that Rick still has the bracelet and that he is going to try and find him, get it and kill him as Kettal was supposed to" replied Izzy.

"How do you know German" whispered Ardeth looking surprised.

"I spent three years in Germany when I was younger" whispered Izzy back.

"Stay here" said Masala.

They got to the door and looking through a crack, could see the man at the side of the barn, sitting on a stool with the radio on a small table. He didn't hear them come in and they waited till he turned the radio off before ambushing him. Surprise was etched on his face as Masalas' knife went in. he was dead before he hit the ground.

"Now we have to try and find out where Rick has gone. This man didn't know where he was but you can guarantee that others will be here to help find him. We have to get to him first" said Masala.

Ardeth called Izzy and they looked around the barn but couldn't find anything except the body of the other man in the hay loft. Izzy went to have a look at the radio on the table. Maybe he could use that back in Egypt, at least some of the parts, they would repair the one he had. As he looked up at Ardeth coming back down the ladder, he saw the piece of paper on the back of the door.

"I've found something" he said "look"

Ardeth took the paper and read it.

"What does it say?" asked Izzy looking at the ancient writing.

"Evy is going to have to teach him to write Egyptian properly. I can only make out some of this. It seems he has gone to a place called Hirschkopf about five miles from here. Lets go" said Ardeth.

So far they had seen no-one else about, whether they had been seen was a different matter. They had walked about two miles when they heard engines. Crawling to the top of the hill, they saw tanks, six of them going along the old road in the same direction as them. Suddenly they stopped and turned on their tracks and fired into the distance. Ardeth couldn't see anything but obviously they could. This went on for about twenty minutes before they moved off down the road.

"Come on, we will have to keep to the trees. Let's hope they just carry on" said Masala.

As they walked they could hear gun fire in the distance. But it wasn't just tank guns but rifles as well. Getting nearer they could see the village of Hirschkopf but there was smoke and flames rising above it. Watching from a safe distance they saw the tanks eventually rumble off down the road and away from the place.

"They have certainly made a mess of that. Let's hope they didn't find Rick" said Izzy.

Rick had made his way to the small village and found an empty house just as you went in. There didn't seem to be many people about and he hid in the attic and waited till it was safe to venture out. God he thought, he was in a mess and he hoped that he was going to be able to get out of it. It turned out that he couldn't go anywhere for ages and then only downstairs, where he found some old food and cold coffee. It was disgusting but it was all he had now, everything else was gone. He took what he had found and went back upstairs. He had to stay really just in case Ardeth did turn up. He would give him a couple of days and then he would make his own way out of there, if he could. He was woken up by tanks rumbling into the village and them firing their guns. People were shouting and screaming as they were gunned down in the streets. He watched from the crack under the rafters and was terrified that they would serch all the houses and find him. He heard soldiers downstairs and he kept as quiet as he could. They must have realised that no-one lived there and left. But a tank put a shell into the house just in case. Rick found himself buried under roof tiles and rafters but he wasn't hurt. He stayed there until he heard the tanks move out. Then all was silent except for crackling of flames and the smell of smoke. Digging himself out and making sure that he was okay, he ventured out. He was appalled at what he saw. Bodies were everywhere, the Germans had shot them all, men, women and children. He felt sick, how could they do this just for the sake of it. He went into one of the houses that wasn't burning to see if there was anything to eat. Even he had to survive. As the others carefully walked past the first house, they wondered why they saw no-one but this was explained as they turned the corner. There were bodies all over the place.

"My God why did they do all this?" said Ardeth.

"I don't know" replied Masala "I suggest we look for Rick and get out of here "

Ardeth walked past the houses, followed by his two friends. Masala went over to one of the houses and went in to see if there was anyone left. Meeting up with the other two further down, they decided that they were the only ones alive in the whole village. Suddenly they heard a noise in one of the houses and cocking their rifles they made their way over, ready to fire at whoever it was. They heard the person coming out of the door and they were just about to fire when they saw it was their friend.

"RICK.thank God" said Ardeth "Are you alright?"

They greeted each other quite warmly.

"Ardeth, Masala, Izzy.oh it's great to see you. Look I'm sorry about all this, I don't know what else to say" said Rick.

"Save it till we get home" said Masala "We have to get back to the balloon and get out of here"

"Save it.save it" said Izzy "He comes out here to sell the bracelet, we nearly get shot AGAIN trying to save your stupid arse and you two say 'save it' I'm going to kill him"

He went to jump on Rick but Ardeth held him back.

"No Izzy, you can kill him when we get back to Egypt but not before I do. But until then we have to survive ourselves and get out of here" said Ardeth letting him go.

"Look it's getting dark, I suggest that we stay here tonight" said Masala. "I can't see anyone coming back here now that everyone is dead. We should be safe"

"Maybe" replied Ardeth "But I think we should leave by dawn"

Izzy wasn't very happy about staying there but he was cold and tired and just needed to sleep. They walked to the house right at the far side of the village, that would seem safer than being in the middle. Rick was on one side of the street and the other two on the other side. They reached the house and carefully went in. Ardeth a little further back than the others. Suddenly a shot rang out and the two men hit the floor, Rick firing his gun at the same time. A man fell from the corner of the room, he was already bleeding from previous wounds but was now dead.

"How many more of them are there?" asked Izzy getting up. "I knew I'd get shot one day with you"

"You're not shot okay" he said.

Ardeth was just walking in the house when the shot rang out, he felt a burning pain and looking down, saw that the bullet had hit him in the left side. Blood was pouring from the wound and he put a hand over it as he staggered to the door. He saw Rick and Izzy putting something in the other room as he leant on the door frame. But they were blurred and he vaguely heard someone call his name before he collapsed to the floor.

"ARDETH!" shouted Rick running over to his friend.

He knew something was wrong as he came out of the room and saw the man leaning on the door, then he passed out. As he reached his side, he saw the wound in his side and between them, the two men lifted him up and laid him on the bed in the corner of the room.

"That bullet must have hit him as he was coming in. We have to stop the bleeding, cover those windows and light that lamp and then get that old tablecloth and rip it into strips" Masala said pointing to the cloth in the corner.

Izzy did what he was told as Masala undid Ardeths clothes and took them off. Then he got the light and stood it close by so Masala could see what he was doing. The bullet was still there and had to be got out.

"Hold this cloth on that wound while I heat up this knife" he said.

"What are you going to do?" asked Izzy.

"I have to get that bullet out, it can't be left there if he is going to live"

"Have you ever done this before?" asked Rick

"Only once a long time ago.okay move the cloth and come and hold this lamp as close as you can" he said taking a deep breath.

Masala didn't want to do this but he had no choice. The knife was hot and he wiped the blood away so he could see what he was doing. The bullet wasn't that far in and it came out quite easily but although it seemed superficial, he was losing a lot of blood. Izzy had found an old sheet and ripping that as well made some pads of folded material and Masala laid them over the wound and then wrapped the strips around him to hold it in place.

"We have to get out of here, if those shots were heard, we could have soldiers here in no time. Look outside and see if there are any poles or something we can make a stretcher out of. We will have to carry him" said Rick looking out of the door.

"Look we can't carry him for miles in the snow, the balloon is twelve miles south of here, that is if it hasn't been found and destroyed by now. It is madness, he could die" replied Izzy

"Izzy we have no choice. He could die anyway, he is losing a lot of blood. Come on Izzy, the quicker we leave the quicker we get there" said Rick angrily.

"Our other men are there, they will make sure it is safe" said Masala.

"And what if they haven't managed that and the balloon is not there, what then?"

"Then we start to worry" replied Rick looking at Masala as he said it.

An hour later they had seen no-one come anywhere near the village. But they were still going to leave. They had found an old stretcher in what was the doctor surgery across the road and laying Ardeth on it, covered him in some old blankets and started off on their journey. They would have to keep to the trees as much as they could, he was heavy and they could not run if anyone came. They would travel by night and rest some of the day, that way they wouldn't be seen so much against the snow. By 8am the next morning, they had only gone five miles and it was hard going. Finding a place in the woods that would give them cover and meant that they could have a fire without anyone seeing the smoke because of the thickness of the trees, they put the stretcher down and while Izzy lit a small fire, Rick checked the wound in Ardeths side. "We have to cover the rest of the distance by nightfall" said Masala "Ardeth needs warmth and those dressings need changing"

"He isn't too good" said Rick "He is running a fever and the wound is inflamed. I'm really worried about him..damn this is all my fault, if he dies, I'll never forgive myself"

Masala grabbed Rick and almost shook him.

"He isn't going to die" replied Masala "Not if we can get him on that balloon and get out of here, now let's go"

About three hours later, they only had about two miles to go. They had done really well and had the fact it was all downhill on their side. But they had to stop as Ardeth was really getting delirious with the fever. They tried to keep him quiet but it wasn't working. He was shivering and his temperature was way up.

"If he keeps this up, someone is going to hear him" said Izzy his eyes darting around.

"I know, but he can't help it. He is getting worse, that temperature is so high, you could fry an egg on his skin" said Rick touching the mans skin.

Masala untied the sash that was round his robes and walking over to Ardeth, tied it quite tightly round his mouth.

"I don't want to do this but I have to. He can still breath through his nose but this stops anyone hearing him. Get some of that snow Rick and lay it on his forehead. Keep doing that till we get to the balloon" said Masala.

They started off again and were just about at the balloon, which seemed fine from what they could see, when four soldiers stepped out of the woods, their rifles raised.

"Where are you going?" shouted one of them.

"We are taking this man to the nearest village, he is sick" said Masala.

"No-one walks round here unless they are up to something and you are not German. Hands in the air.now" the soldier shouted.

Hearing the voices, the two men on the balloon, grabbed their rifles and climbing down out of the balloon and through the camouflage, looked to see what was going on. They saw the soldiers aiming their guns at their friends. They also saw Ardeth laying on the makeshift stretcher.

"You go that way, I'll go this. Then on the count of three once we are in position, fire" said Abdul whispering to the other man.

The man nodded and crept around the trees. Once he saw the other man crouch down by one of the trees, he raised his hand and waved it three times. At that they both fired. Rick and the others fell to the ground, dropping the stretcher, wondering what the hell was going on. When Masala looked up, he saw his two men coming out into the open and the soldiers were laying dead on the ground in front of him.

"Thank you" said Masala "Quick, help us get Ardeth into the balloon. Rick, Izzy, you get rid of that camouflage and lets get out of here before someone comes to investigate the shots"

Abdul and the other man helped Masala get Ardeth onto the balloon. They took him to the far end and laid him down on the small bed. Rick and Izzy boarded the thing and Izzy got it started. As they rose up over the trees, they saw several soldiers coming towards the clearing. They started to fire up at the balloon and Rick and the others fired back as Izzy got up speed with the engines. Once they were on their way, he slowed the engines down. Rick helped Masala undress Ardeth and dress the wound. His was still very hot. They made sure he was comfortable and Abdul kept bathing his head. Masala took Rick over to the other side of the balloon and pinned him up against the mast.

"Now we are back on here, I can say what I wanted to back at the village" said Masala "You are without doubt, the most selfish, self-centred person I have ever met. You claim to be our friend and yet at the first sign of getting money you take the bracelet, forget about what trouble it would cause if Hitler had got his hands on it"

"But I." started Rick trying to pull away from him.

"Shutup" said Masala pushing him against the rail. "Because of you, we have had to risk our lives to help you. You have put your wife in danger, we had to stop two men from killing her before we left Egypt. Now you are responsible for what has happened to Ardeth. I hope you are satisfied"

"It wasn't my fault Ardeth got shot" pleaded Rick.

"Then whose was it? He wouldn't have got shot if he hadn't been in Austria looking for you. If I had my way, I would knock the shit out of you. But I won't, I am more worried about Ardeth than to bother with you. Stay here and stay out of my way" he replied pushing the man away.

Rick sat down, shocked at what Masala had said. He had been right though, it WAS his fault. He felt ashamed and looked over at where Masala was kneeling beside Ardeth. He looked up at Izzy who was glaring at him.

"Don't look at me.every time someone is with you, they get shot. This time it was your best friend. I hope you are happy" said Izzy "Get up here and keep this steady, while I go and see how Ardeth is. That is if you can do that without getting into trouble"

Rick took over the controls and glared after Izzy as he walked down to the others.

"How is he?" Izzy asked kneeling down beside him.

"I don't know. He shouldn't be this hot, not after all this time" said Masala "And that wound is still not healing, it is all inflamed and infected. How long before we reach Egypt?"

"If I can keep up this speed, it's 8pm, I would think barring any trouble, we could be in Egypt by tomorrow night" said Izzy confidently.

By the dawn, Rick was laying on his bed, watching the stars. A voice made him jump, it was Masala.

"I thought you might like a coffee" he said holding out a mug of steaming liquid.

"Thanks.how is he?" asked Rick.

"Not good. That wound is infected, he needs something to help the infection and I haven't got anything here" replied Masala, fear in his voice.

"If we fly this crate as close to my place as possible, we can take him there. Evy will know what to do, she always does" said Rick.

"Okay, thank you, that would be great.look I'm sorry about earlier, I was angry and worried" said Masala.

"Don't be, everything you said was right. I am selfish. I should have known better than to try and sell that bracelet. But I was doing it for Evy, you know we are broke. We are only just keeping our heads above water. Still I should have found another way" replied Rick looking down.

"Look, go and sit with Ardeth, keep the cloth wet though. He needs a friend" said Masala putting a hand on the mans shoulder and patting it.

Rick thanked him and walked over and sat down beside his friend. He did look very ill and Rick hoped they would be in Egypt soon. Izzy managed to keep them away from any anti-aircraft fire and away from anywhere that meant they could be seen. Soon they were flying over the water and Egypt could be seen in the distance.

"Come on Ardeth, hang in there pal" said Rick wiping is face with the cloth.

He didn't seem to be as hot as he had been but Rick wasn't sure. Maybe he was getting over the worst. Izzy shouted that they were almost at Cairo. They flew over the pyramids and out towards the house that Rick owned on the outskirts of the city. Izzy was good at flying this thing and they actually landed in the grounds behind the house. Evy was looking out of the window and saw this balloon flying towards the place. Suddenly she realised it was Izzy and getting up, ran downstairs and out of the door to meet it. As it landed, she ran to it and saw Rick climbing down the ladder.

"You bastard.how dare you put me and everyone else at risk for that damn bracelet" she screamed at him. "Where is Ardeth and Masala?"

"EVY.you can kill me later, Ardeth has been hurt, badly, we need to get him in the house. I said you would look after him. He needs help" said Rick turning to help the others.

"Ardeth.hurt..oh damn you Rick. Bring him inside" she told the men.

They carried the man into the house and upstairs where she pulled back the covers on one of the beds and got them to leave him there.

"Right, Rick take everyone downstairs, then you can go and get doctor Mender as fast as you can. Masala can make some coffee and food" she said "Go on hurry"

Rick raced down the road to where the doctor lived and then they hurried back in the mans car. He told the doctor where Ardeth was and what had happened and then walked into the kitchen.

"The doctor is upstairs. We'll know something soon" he said pacing the floor.

It was a while before both the doctor and Evy came down. They asked how he was.

"He will fine in a few days. I have put some stuff on the wound that will take out the infection and given him something for the temperature. He is a lucky man, some how that knife, although heated up, was rusty and it was that that was causing the infection. You weren't to know Masala, you did what you thought was right. Keeping his temperature down was the best thing you could have done. I will come back tomorrow and redo the wound. I will see myself out" he said.

"That was short and sweet" said Masala "Didn't seem like he wanted to talk to us at all"

"Don't take it personally" replied Rick "That is just his way but he is a brilliant doctor"

Evy showed the men where they could freshen up and sleep. Rick said he would make some dinner for later. He was still trying to get back into Evys good books after what he had put them all through. His wife went back upstairs to look after Ardeth. She hadn't seen the man without his robes before and she wondered why she had never noticed just how attractive he was. As she wiped his face with the cloth, she studied his face. He had strong features, a neat beard, tattoos adored his body as well as his face and he had that thicker bottom lip that she found rather sexy. The thing she did remember were his deep brown eyes. It was about 3am when he started to wake up and wondered where he was.

"Take it easy" she said "You've been shot Ardeth"

"Evy? How did I get here, where are the others?" he asked softly.

"You have been unconscious for about five days and have been very ill. The others are asleep. You are at my house.do you want a drink?" she asked.

"Please.I feel so weak.I remember going into a house, a shot and then this burning pain in my side, then nothing. Rick.is he here?" he asked remembering nothing of late.

She put an arm round him and helped him sit up a bit so he could drink some water. Then she laid him down again.

"Yes, everyone is okay. You got back here with no problems luckily. Now you are feeling a bit better, I can kill Rick with no problems" she said.

"No Evy.don't blame him for this, he was only doing what he thought was the right thing.for you. I would have done the same in his shoes" said Ardeth

Ardeth winced in pain as he moved and Evy told him to stop talking as get some sleep. She brushed his hair back with her hand and he closed his eyes. Making sure he was asleep, she got up to leave the room. Suddenly without warning, she turned back and bending down, kissed him on the cheek and then on the lips. She didn't know why she did that but maybe it was because she would never have another chance. Closing the door, she went downstairs to get herself something to eat. She was exhausted and Masala found her asleep with her head on the table in the kitchen about 5am. He took the cloak he had laid over the back of the chair and draped over the womans shoulders. Then poured himself a coffee and sat on one of the other chairs. All the others were still asleep but he had been worried about Ardeth and couldn't sleep properly. But looking in on the man, he found that he looked a bit better and his temperature was well down. He left him to sleep, he could talk to him in the next day or so. He realised that he must have come round or Evy would not have left him. She heard a noise and woke up and saw Masala sitting on the chair with his coffee.

"Sorry didn't mean to wake you" he said "How is Ardeth, I did look in and he seemed a bit better"

"He came round, I think he will be fine in a few days, with rest. I am still so angry at Rick. I know we are broke but there must have been another way to get some money other than take that bracelet" she said yawning.

"I know he was irresponsible but I think he feels guilty enough about what happened to Ardeth and what could have happened to you" replied Masala.

"Suppose you are right. I'd better check on Ardeth. Try and get some sleep yourself" she said going out of the door.

A couple of days later, Ardeth was up and about. His side was still sore but he was feeling much better. He reckoned he would be back to normal in a few days. He was talking to Rick about what to do with the bracelet. No-one could be allowed to get it again.

"We have to find somewhere to put it that no-one can find" said Ardeth looking at it. "We dare not risk anyone else finding out about it like Hitler did. Next time we might not be able to stop the Scorpion King or his army"

"I know, but where?" Rick asked.

While they were talking, Masala had rode out to the camp to let the others know that everything was fine and that Ardeth would be back in a few days. He wasn't expecting what greeted him when he arrived. Mohammid came running over to him.

"Masala, thank the gods you are back, we have big trouble" he said grabbing the reins.

"Calm down, what is wrong?" asked Masala getting off his horse.

"While you and Ardeth were trying to find Rick, someone has been to Ahm Shere and found the Black Book of the Dead and maybe the Book of Amun Ra. We found some dead bodies there and evidence that they had been inside. If someone has those.it doesn't bare thinking about" said Mohamid.

"Damn, this gets worse. Okay thanks for telling me. Get some men and try and find out where they have been taken. Someone must know something. I will get back to the O'Connells and let them know what has happened" he replied shaking his head.

With that he rode of at high speed towards Cairo. He hoped that they could get the books back before anyone decided to try and raise Imhotep or anything else. It was evening before he reached the house and jumping off the horse, didn't even wait to knock on the door. He raced in, making Rick run out into the hall to see who it was.

"Masala.it's you.whatever's wrong, didn't expect you back for a few days" said Rick

"Neither did I. Where's Ardeth, I must see him and you, it's important" he said getting his breath back.

"He is in the study, so is Evy.look what's wrong?" asked Rick following him.

Masala hurried into the room and the others also looked surprised to see him back so soon.

"Ardeth, I must speak with all of you. Something terrible has happened" he said.

"What is Masala?" asked Ardeth slowly getting up. "Sit down please"

Masala sat down and took the drink offered to him. Then he related all that Mohamid had told him when he reached the camp. Ardeths faced paled and he sat down.

"Oh my God, they have the books.even without the bracelet, they can still raise Imhotep again. Damn it Rick, you have really started something again. If we can't get those books back and stop before it's too late. Then.." he said

"Do we know where they are?" asked Evy "The books or the men who took them"

"No" said Masala "But I have men trying to find out. We will hear as soon as they know. I just hope we are not too late and they haven't already left for Germany"

Rick sat down with a thump and stared at the man.

"I know I am going to regret asking this.but why Germany?" he asked

"Because that is where they will be going. Without them and the bracelet they could not have raised the Scorpion King. They needed the books but even without the bracelet, those books are dangerous in the wrong hands. Anyone reading from the black book could invoke everything we stopped before" said Ardeth

"Let's hope they haven't left Egypt, how long since they got the books do you know?" asked Evy.

"I am not sure, no more than a week I wouldn't think" said Masala "We should hear something very shortly as to where they are"

Rick leaned on the old fireplace and rubbed his neck with his other hand.

"How can you be sure, Egypt is a big place and they could already have left" said Rick.

Ardeth walked over to the sofa, holding his side, it was still quite painful. Evy told him to sit down.

"You should be resting that, now come on, sit down Ardeth" she said.

"Sorry, I thought it was okay. Look we have people all over the place, not necessarily Med-jai but they let us know about things. Someone will know if they are still here and if they have left, we will know exactly where they are" replied Ardeth.

Although the network was good, it wasn't as good as he made out and he glanced across at Masala. They would have to leave and find those books one way or another. No-one must learn the secrets of them. He knew he wasn't really well enough to go but he couldn't let them do it alone.

"Hang on" said Evy "You have some hair-brained scheme of going with Masala to find these books, don't you Ardeth. You're not fully recovered yet, you can't go, it would be madness"

"I have to Evy, I am their commander, I can't expect them to do what I will not do" he said taking her hand.

"Even to the point of risking your health" said Rick "No, you will stay here, I will go with Masala. At the end of the day, this is all down to me anyway. They would not have the books at all if it wasn't for me and that damn bracelet"

They decided that they would wait till morning to hear from his men, it was no good arguing with Ardeth now. If they didn't, then Masala and Rick would leave and try and find out themselves. As it happened there was a knock on the door about 2am and Mohamid came in with two of the other Med-jai.

"Mohamid" said Masala opening the door "Have you found out anything?

"Yes, can we see Ardeth?" asked the man.

"No" said Evy coming down "He is asleep, he must rest. You can tell us what is going on"

Masala nodded to them and they all went into the study, Rick joined them a few minutes later. He had made sure that Ardeth was asleep first. He knew what the man was like if he thought something was going on.

"They were seen getting a boat to Yalta on the Ukraine peninsular. Word has it that they are camped at a place called Oktiabrske which is about 100miles north of there. Trouble is there are quite a lot of soldiers there. Our scout has told us that the men, of which there are only two now, are travelling to a place called Berchtesgaden on the Austria/German border. Apparently this is where Hitler has a mountain retreat" said Mohamid.

"That must be where they are taking the books. What do we do, go to the Ukraine or straight to Hitlers place?" asked Rick.

"If we can get Izzy to help us again" said Masala "I think we should go straight to Berchtesgaden, we can be there before these men arrive. They will be going either by boat or over land for some of the way. We have no idea if they are being picked up. We have to assume they are not"

"Okay, that would mean we could be there in just under three days" said Rick working it out roughly knowing the speed of Izzys balloon.

"That would be brilliant" said Masala. "I have to tell Ardeth we are leaving, I need to know what he wants us to do with the books once we have them again"

Rick and Evy wasn't too pleased about this but he did need to know. It was keeping Ardeth there that was going to be the problem, he was so stubborn and obstinate. He would put his duty first before his own health. He had done it before.

"Get me to help doing what?" asked Izzy coming into the study.

Rick told him what was going on while Masala went up to see Ardeth. Izzy was unsure at first, he didn't like the idea of going into Germany, especially to Hitlers home in the mountains.

"Look it isn't going to be easy, we know that. We also don't know if Hitler himself will be there. All we k now is that is where they are taking the books. I am hoping he isn't, it will be easier that way. But we have no idea how many soldiers will be in the area" said Rick "You will be paid well, if that is what is worrying you"

"Okay, if I get paid well for it, then I will take you. But you will owe me big time for this O'Connell, big time" replied Izzy.

Rick shook his head and knew that his friend meant it. He had got him into trouble before and shot, but this would be the most dangerous thing they had done together. Masala told Ardeth where the men were going and what they had decided to do.

"When we get the books back, what do you want done with them Ardeth. They have to be put somewhere that no-one can ever find them. This is becoming a habit" said Masala looking out of the window onto the dark grounds of the house.

"I know exactly what I will be doing with those books when I have them back" said Ardeth but did not elaborate.

He got out of bed and walked over to the window, he was holding his side and Masala saw the look of pain on the mans face.

"You will have to stay here Ardeth. That side of yours is not healed enough for you to come with us. I can handle what needs to be done" said the man.

"No, I am going. If I bandage it up well, it will be fine. I am not riding, we will be in the balloon. I will not stay here because of this, I have been wounded far worse than this before and have still ridden with my people. This will not stop me" Ardeth said leaning on the window ledge.

"Okay, I might reluctantly agree but Rick and Evy won't like it. You know how she fusses over you. I might even go as far as to say, if it wasn't for Rick.."

Ardeth looked aghast at him, shocked at what he was implying. Evy.interested in him if Rick wasn't there.no, he was wrong about that. She was just a caring person, no more, no less he thought. However he didn't answer Masala, he didn't want to get into a debate over this subject.

"Come, let us go and talk with Rick and make arrangements for tomorrow. Now please back me up with regard to me going, I will be careful, I assure you" said Ardeth.

Masala knew he couldn't insist upon Ardeth remaining at the house so he agreed to back him up. He would make sure the man did not do anything that might endanger his health. They walked downstairs and found the others in the kitchen having coffee. Ardeth told them what he was doing and after a long argument, Evy stormed off upstairs, angry that Ardeth had no respect for his own health. She knew he was a stubborn man but this was madness.

"I have found a map of Austria and Germany" said Rick opening it on the table "Now Berchtesgaden is at the base of the Watzmann mountain and Hitlers place should be somewhere around there. We can find that out when we get there. Izzy has made a list with Mohamid of what we will take with us, supplies, warm clothes, etc"

"What about rifles, do we have enough of them?" asked Ardeth "And how many of us are going?"

"Well, there is me, Izzy, Masala, Mohamid, Abdul, the other two men that were with before and you" said Rick "Is that enough?"

"Yes, we need to be as small a group as possible, that way there are no mistakes, we can stick together easier" said Mohamid "If you remember, we were only small when we found you at the city that day"

Rick remembered, how they had run outside and were confronted by about eight men with rifles, they had never seen where they came from. Ardeth said he would go and speak to Evy. He needed to make her understand why he was going. He knocked on Evy's door and went in when he heard her call out. She was sitting on the bed and it was obvious she had been crying. He walked over to the window, his back to her.

"Evy, I am sorry but I have to go. I have never missed going on a patrol or anything else just because I have been hurt. Believe me I have been shot, knifed and other things over the years, some of them a lot worse than this. I will be fine and I won't be on my own, Rick and the others will be there" he said.

"I know and I'm not trying to tell you what to do.it's just that I care about what happens to you. I know I shouldn't but I can't help it. You have done so much for us over the years and as far as I am concerned, you are part of the family" she replied.

"Thank you and I feel that when I am here but this is my duty, just as it was to destroy Imhotep. If you will bandage this tightly before I leave, it should be fine, it is healing well now" he said turning to her.

She got up and telling him to take off his robe, she said she would be back in a moment with the bandages and then she could see to the injury. He laid his robe over the chair and sat on the bed while he waited for her. She was back in no time and sat beside him. Undoing the old bandage, she put some cream on a piece of cloth, then got him to hold it in place while she wound the bandage round him, pulling it fairly tight. He said it was okay. Evy still couldn't get over all the other tattoos that he had over his body. It was very rare that anyone saw them with all the robes he wore. Ardeth could smell the perfume that Evy always wore combined with the scent of her bath oils, making a rather warm, heady aroma. He knew if she didn't hurry up, he would end up embarrassing her and himself. Masala had been right of course, at least on his part, he had cared more about Evy than he should have done.

"There, that should be okay Ardeth. Just try not to do anything too strenuous or you could open it up again, it isn't healed enough for fighting" she said looking up at him.

"Th.thank you.I'll try not to.do any fighting I mean" he said softly.

For a moment she couldn't take her eyes off him and then she snapped out of it, got up and put the stuff back in the box which she didn't use. Did she imagine it or was he looking at her differently all of a sudden? Had he been awake the other night when she kissed him? Maybe she had given something away that she had kept hidden for years. She turned to leave the room and bumped straight into Ardeth, who had stood up to replace his robes before going downstairs.

"Sorry, I didn't realise you had got up.I.I had better go down before someone comes looking for us.for me" she stammered.

"Evy.no, doesn't matter, yes we had better go down, I might end up doing something we will both regret" he replied unlocking the door.

She walked up behind him and touched his arm, causing him to stop what he was doing.

"What might we regret?" she asked looking up at him.

She didn't know whether she really wanted to know and yet...Ardeth opened the door and stepping out into the hall, stopped, looked up and down, then turned round taking her into his arms and kissed her. Then he walked towards the stairs, leaving her staring after him, touching her lips where he had kissed her and wondering what made him do it. Evy wanted to run after him but it wouldn't be appropriate with Rick and the others downstairs. She would ask him about this later.if she dared.

"Have you got a plan?" he asked walking into the study.

"Yes we have" replied Masala "Did you speak to Evy?"

"I did, everything is fine. She understands why I have to go. She re- bandaged my side, it should be okay now. When do we leave?" asked Ardeth.

Rick told him that it would be later that day as long as Izzy could get the dirigible refuelled that morning.

"Ardeth, what are you going to do with the books when we get them back?" asked Rick "You never did say"

"I will destroy them, then the pieces will be scattered to the four winds of Egypt. No-one will ever be able to raise these creatures again" he replied.

"And what if we don't find them?" asked Izzy "What if Hitler already has them and reads them? What if he has already raised this army or this mummy? Believe me O'Connell, if he has, then you will be finding your own way home. I will have already left the area"

"Okay Izzy" replied Rick putting his arm round the man "I think we get the message, now will you please get that damn balloon ready"

"DIRIGIBLE - it's a dirigible" relied Izzy marching out of the door, swearing as he went.

"Would he really leave us there?" asked Evy worried.

Rick and the others looked at her. "No of course not" said Rick "And what do you mean by us - you are not coming, not on this trip"

Masala and Ardeth decided to go and help Izzy as the O'Connells started a real ding-dong of an argument about whether or not she should go with them. Two hours later, they emerged from the house and walked down to where the balloon was still moored after the landing a few days ago.

"Evy is going with us" stated Rick handing some things to Masala who was in the balloon.

They looked at each other and then at Evy, standing there with her arms crossed and knew it would be wise not to dissuade her. Obviously Rick had had no luck. Ardeth sighed and walked to where Izzy was fiddling with the engines.

"I really wish she wasn't coming" he said "This is going to be no place for her"

"From what I know of Evy O'Connell, and I have not known her that long, is that nothing scares her and she won't be left behind like the normal little wife" said Izzy as the man passed him a spanner.

"I know" said Ardeth.

Within a few hours they were on their way. Masala had sent one of the men back to the camp, to let them know what was happening. Mohamid would be left in charge, with instructions that if they heard nothing from them within ten days, to assume that they were dead. There was no way the Med- jai could help them all that distance away. This time they were on their own. There was always a possibility that they could engage the help of the local resistance, without telling them too much of what they were after. But that would be a last resort.

The two men had reached a place called Oktiabrske in the Ukraine and had to stay in an old ruined cottage just outside. It was more like a camp really as there was hardly any roof on the cottage and the kitchen was wrecked. They still had to get to the German/Austrian border but were going to find it hard going as the people who were supposed to pick them up had been shot down near the coast.

"I don't like this, it is going to take us forever to get back to Germany" said one man.

"We will find transport somehow" replied Claus "After what I have seen so far, the quicker we get these books to Hitler the better. I have a bad feeling about these things and wish I had never seen them"

"They are evil, that's what they are.evil" said the other man.

"Come on, let's try and ambush a lorry or something. I heard engine noise from over that hill. We'll be in Germany before you know it" said Claus getting up and making sure his gun was loaded.

Ardeth and the others had made good time and apart from a couple of engine problems were now, according to the map, travelling over Germany. They used the wind when possible, especially over areas where there could be German troops and at other times, when they did use the engines, no-one on the ground seemed to notice. Of course it did help in the fact that it was cloudy and raining for most of the time. Only once had they had to put the engines at full power and that was over the Austrian border as they headed towards Germany. They had flown over a castle and instead of carrying on, decided to have a closer look. Suddenly flack from guns on the battlements of the castle whizzed past the dirigible, making them panic. If the balloon was hit then they would crash and possibly all be killed, they were travelling at a height of about 3000ft in that area. They made it with only a few holes in the main hull of the dirigible, the balloon itself untouched.

"We will have to avoid looking at any more castles" said Rick "It looks like they are a main source of the German guns"

"It was your idea O'Connell" replied Izzy "Always going in with your feet, never your brains. Being shot is one thing but being blown up, in midair is not my idea of fun"

Izzy went to inspect the damage with Masala, he was angry but even he hadn't thought they would have guns in castles.

"He is never going to let you forget when he got shot" said Ardeth "Still he is right, we don't want to take any more chances"

"I realise that now. With Izzy it is a life long campaign to make me feel bad. I think he forgave me years ago but he likes to remind me now and again" laughed Rick. "How is your side now, I saw you holding it earlier"

"Not too bad. It doesn't seem to want to heal quickly this time. Maybe I am getting old. It was different when I was younger, things never bothered me. I'd get shot and it would be healed within a couple of days, the same as other injuries. But now, everything seems to take longer" replied Ardeth.

"Comes to us all my friend, it comes to us all"

Rick left Ardeth watching the mountains pass them as he poured himself a coffee and went to help Izzy. Evy went over to the man and stood beside him.

"Do you want me to have a look at that bandage?" she asked.

"Not at the moment, maybe later" he replied without looking at her.

He took a deep breath and turned so that he was leaning on the side of the dirigible. She looked around to see where everyone was. Rick was with Izzy at the bow of the balloon, Masala was behind them and the other men were asleep. She left him to go and see Rick, it was getting uncomfortable being this close to Ardeth. As she stood up, Ardeth grabbed her hand and squeezed it. She smiled at him and he let go as she walked away. Rick told Masala that they should be close to the Watzmann mountain in an hour or two, they would be able to land in the woods that were marked on the map and walk from there.

"Hopefully it shouldn't take long on foot. Let's hope that Hitler doesn't have an army of his own, guarding him" replied Masala.

Evy handed Rick a coffee and sat down beside him, he was looking at her strangely and she asked him what the matter was.

"You know he loves you don't you?" he said.

"Who loves me? What are you talking about?" she asked wondering what he had seen.

"Ardeth, I see the way he looks at you. Seen it for a long time" replied Rick.

Evy stood up and pretended to be looking for something in her bag, trying to avoid Ricks eyes, just in case she gave anything away.

"Don't be silly Rick, what ever makes you say that, after all this time" she asked.

"Little things, a smile here, touch of the arm.a squeeze of the hand and I suppose the way you rush to help him when he is hurt or unhappy.little things. Hey I'm not angry.I think it is nice, especially the way I have been lately. Do you love him?" he asked.

"Of course I don't, I still love you.why are you being like this. What are you hiding? I know you Rick, you hide things behind statements. Are you fed up with me or have you got someone else?"

Rick couldn't answer, he knew what she said was true, up to a point. And not wanting to get into an argument, even though he had been the one to bring the subject up, went back to where Izzy was and left Evy, shocked and wondering what he had meant and what was going on. He had been staying out at night and spending longer away from Egypt whenever he could. He had always made a joke or said it was because things had to be done there and then. But now she wondered. Or had he seen Ardeth kissing her the other night? She didn't get a chance to ask him as Izzy shouted that they were almost on top of the mountain and would have to land earlier than they had anticipated. Trying not to hit anything, they managed to land in a clearing, in the forest which lined the sides of the mountain. They would wait till daylight to find out exactly where they were and how far they were from Hitlers mountain home. Unbeknown to them, they had been seen landing the balloon, even though it wasn't quite light. A small group of four resistance men were scouting the area. They were always around there just in case there was any chance of getting to Hitler or some of his entourage. Creeping through the trees, they saw the balloon in the clearing and decided to keep an eye on it till daylight. As the light became better, Rick and the others climbed down the side the of the balloon, Izzy decided that he would stay there just to keep an eye on things and be ready in case they needed to get out of there quickly. The four men could see that these people were not Germans and could possibly have been forced to land. They would have to risk talking to them.

"Rick.we have company" said Evy as she saw the men walking towards them.

"It's okay, I don't think they are Germans.let's see what they want" replied Rick "Masala, wait"

Masala had raised his gun and was pointing it at the men as was Ardeth. The men reached a safe spot and spoke.

"Who are you, have you crashed?" asked Hans.

"No, we landed here" said Rick.

He introduced the others standing there and then the four men came closer and did the same. They shook hands and they told Rick about the area and why they were in the woods.

"Now you know about us, why are you here? It is not the safest of places to land, Hitler has a home up there on the mountain. If you can, I would suggest you get this thing going and leave" said Hans.

"I am afraid we can't" replied Ardeth "We have to retrieve two books that we believe are either in his home or on their way here. It is of the utmost importance that we get these back and return them to Egypt"

"You're not thinking of actually going into the place. There are guards and although we know Hitler himself is not there at the moment, he is due in two days time. We have a good grapevine and know the comings and goings of this place. You will be killed" said Pierre.

"We have no choice" said Rick "Hitler wants these books and if it hadn't been for me he would never have got them. We have to take this risk"

Hans asked about Evy and said she should stay at the balloon but she made it very plan that she was no feeble woman and wasn't going to be pushed about by men who thought her place was at home. The four men soon got the message. Rick showed them the map he had and they marked exactly where the house was and how to get there.

"Here is a guard house, with maybe three guards at the moment. When Hitler is there, the guards number about fifty. Then the entrance to the Eagles Nest is just along the lane" said Pierre.

"But I thought it was half way up the mountain?" asked Masala.

"It is, but to get to it you have to go through a tunnel into the heart of the mountain, then there is an elevator that goes straight through the mountain, right into the building itself. There is quite a trek before you get to the tunnel. The Eagles Nest is about 6000ft above sea level. You have about 1000ft to go before you reach the tunnel entrance" said Hans.

"An elevator, right in the mountain.who built all that?" asked Evy.

"Possibly Albert Speer, Hitlers architect, it was built about four years ago.Look if you are determined to get in there, we will help you. We know this area well, you do not. But once you have the things you want, we have to leave. Even then it will take us till tomorrow to get there and back. As I said Hitler is due here in two days but his guards arrive a day ahead of him. So we could have problems if we are not out of there in time"

Rick told the men they didn't have to help but was thankful that they are offered and went to get the bags they were going to take with them.just essentials and their guns of course.

"I wish you would stay here" said Ardeth to Evy as she put her bag over her shoulder.

"I have to go.want to go. Don't worry, I can take care of myself. After Imhotep and the Scorpion King, this will be a piece of cake" she replied walking away.

She didn't want to get into a deep conversation with Ardeth after what Rick had said because she knew that she felt the same about the man.although she would never admit it to Rick and anyway, she still had to ask Ardeth why he had kissed her that night. About five hours later, they had reached the road that lead to the guard house and Pierre pointed up to where they could see the Eagles Nest.

"Just along there, about a quarter of a mile is the guard house. Ardeth, Rick, you come with me, Pierre you stay here with Evy and Masala. We will signal when you can proceed" said Hans.

They hid in the trees as the others crept along the side of the lane towards the guard house. Hans waved his gun as a signal for them to stop.

"There are two guards standing in front of the guardhouse, the other must be inside, it is where they sleep as well. Johann, Rick, you two go round the back, Ardeth, you come with me, we'll go this way"

Ardeth put the rifle over his shoulder and took out one of his knives. He told Hans that he worked better in this style of encounter with a knife or sword, it was quieter for a start. When they saw their friends arrive at the back of the guardhouse, they crept up to the front. Hans took one of the guards and Ardeth dealt with the second one from behind. Both were dragged into the trees are making sure they were dead. Rick and Johann sneaked round and went inside the guardhouse. Unfortuanately there were another four guards inside and as they walked in.

"Hands up" shouted a voice from behind the door.

Turning round quickly, Rick and Johann found themselves being relieved of their guns and being told to move over to the other side of the room. From outside, Ardeth and Hans heard the commotion and stood for a few seconds either side of the door.

"When I nod, we go in, I will shout down and then we open fire. Let's hope Rick understands quickly" Hans whispered to Ardeth who nodded.

The man waited a few seconds and then nodded to Ardeth, then both together rushed the door, shouting down at the same time. Rick and Johann did exactly that and there was a hail of bullets and the four guards fell to the floor before they could even respond.

"You two okay?" asked Ardeth lowering his rifle.

"We're fine, thanks to you two" said Rick "I thought there was only supposed to be three guards here?"

"Normally there are, could be because of Hitlers arrival, there was an attempt on his life a while back, perhaps he feels that he needs more security. Anyway, let's get rid of them and then get to the tunnel. The quicker we are out of here the better" said Hans.

Up in the Eagles Nest, the two men who had brought the books and had arrived the day before after getting that truck which they drove all the way there with little trouble. They were sitting on the balcony, waiting for when Hitler arrived. There would be no chance of that when he did get there. Both men would be told to get back to the servants quarters, no-one was allowed in the main house while the Furher was there.

"Did you hear gunfire?" asked Claus "I wonder what it was?"

"Could be anything, locals shooting deer, the guards killing a thief, don't worry about it, we are safe here" replied the other man "Come on, let's eat. Those books are in his office and he won't be here for another 24 hours at least. Did you see those two new servant girls.we could have some fun tonight"

The other man agreed and laughed at the thought of spending a night with two beautiful girls, having good food to eat for a change and plenty of wine. Hitler would never know.

"There is a storm coming" said Hans "You can hear it in the distance, we have to get into the Eagles Nest before it arrives or the elevator could be out of action. The storms round here are quite bad and effect the power stations, come on"

Johann went back to signal the others who were waiting in the trees. They had heard the gun shots but were pleased to learn that no-one had been hurt from their party. As they all made their way to the tunnel entrance, the heavens opened and they were soaked by the time they got there. Lightening flashed around them and the thunder crashed.

"Are storms always this bad?" shouted Evy

"Yes, they build up over the mountains and converge on each other, making one big storm. Come on, quickly, before the power goes" shouted back Pierre.

They ran into the tunnel and made their way along it, till they reached the elevator and getting inside, pushed the button that took them up to the Eagles Nest.

"Keep you guns ready" said Hans "We don't know who may be waiting for us when this thing stops. There should only be the staff, which I think number about six"

"Let's hope the men with the books are here already or we will have to wait for them" said Rick.

"If they are not here, then we will have to wait back at the tunnel entrance. We can't wait here, just in case they don't arrive till Hitler is already here. We'll have a good look around to find out. I wish I had some explosives with me"

"Why?" asked Ardeth.

"Because we could plant them inside the Eagles Nest and blow Hitler up, we might never get another chance like this" said Hans.

"There will be other chances to do it, now we have been in here once, we can get in again" said Pierre.

The elevator doors opened and they found themselves inside the building. Most of them split up and searched the downstairs. Pierre and Rick found the staff in the kitchen. They were scared when they saw the men with guns and did what they were told.

"Tie them up and put them in the pantry, lock the door. We don't need to kill them, we will be gone before they can cause us any trouble" said Pierre.

"Is there anyone else here?" he asked before gagging the older man.

"Three people, two men who arrived yesterday and a servant girl, all of them are upstairs. What do you want here, you will never get away with this" he said.

"The two men are who we are here to see, then we will be gone. But believe me, we will be back, your Furher will get his comeuppance" said Rick.

They locked the door of the pantry and went to find the others, who were waiting by the stairs. They told them that the two men were upstairs with a girl.

"You go and see to them, we will look for the books" said Rick "They have to be down here, they wouldn't keep them with them"

"Okay, but be careful and do not show any lights. The blackouts are not in place yet, use your torches" said Hans.

He and Pierre, along with Masala went upstairs to find the two men. It didn't take them long to find one of them, who was asleep in one of the rooms. They dealt with him and then went to look for the other one. Unfortunately the other one, Claus, had heard movement on the landing and coming out of the room, saw the men dragging his friend along the hall to another room. He wasn't sure but his friend looked like he was dead. Grabbing his gun, Claus crept along the landing in the other direction and down the stairs. He guessed what they were after.the books.he had to get them and hide them ready for Hitler. Outside, back at the guardhouse, four more guards had arrived and one of them had found the bodies of the others in the trees. They knew something must be going on up in Hitlers home.

"Come on, we have to get up there" shouted the guard above the storm.

They ran along the road to the tunnel and then made their way to the elevator, suddenly the man stopped.

"Wait, if there is someone up in the house, then they will hear the noise of this coming down. We will use the stairs.they have only just been finished and lead up into the kitchen" said one of the guards.

Going up the spiral stairs, they emerged in the kitchen and found the staff tied up in the pantry. Telling them to wait, they would go and deal with the people and then go back to rescue them.

Rick and the others had found the office just off the main room that led onto the balcony. Inside they found the books laying on the desk. Ardeth went over and checked them.

"Thank the Gods" he said "We have found them. Now let's take them and get out of here, this place gives me the creeps"

"Here, put them in this bag I brought.that's it.do it up while I hold it.now come one" said Rick.

"We have to find the others" said Evy "I think I heard them outside the room"

"Wait.it could be someone else, be careful" said Ardeth.

They crept to the door and looking out, saw no-one and started to walk along the corridor towards the elevator. Suddenly they heard a muffled cry and turning round saw Evy in the arms of a German guard, his hand over her mouth and a gun at her throat.

"Stay where you are or I will kill her" said the man loudly. "Now get in there"

He pointed to the main room that they had just come out of. Ardeth and Rick moved towards the room, with their hands in the air, knowing that one false move would result in Evy being shot. Hans and the others were then coming down the stairs when they saw what was happening.

"Wait" whispered Hans "we will have to get them out of there. Once we are down the stairs, I'll create a noise out here and you two jump whoever comes out. With a bit of luck, Rick and Ardeth can deal with the other one"

"Okay, but be careful, the other one has Evy" said Masala.

As they reached the bottom of the stairs and got ready to rescue their friends, Masala moaned and crumpled to the floor as one of the other guards hit him over the head, Hans felt a gun in his back as the other one reached round and took his gun.

"Inside.shnell" said the guard.

The other guard, grabbed Masala and dragging him into the room, dumped him on the floor. Evy was standing beside Rick as they went in and seeing Masala, wondered if they would ever get out of there alive or if they would be kept there until this Hitler arrived the next day. Ardeth went to go over to his friend but the guard stopped him.

"Let me see to him, he needs help" said Ardeth "you have my weapons"

The one that seemed to be in charge nodded and the man ran to his friends side and checked to see if he was still alive. He was but had a lovely bump on his head. He would be okay in a while. Getting him onto the sofa, Ardeth went back to Rick and the others.

"There are only four of them" whispered Hans "We have to jump them or we will be in a position soon that will mean we all die once Hitler arrives"

"The power has gone off, so in this candle light it should be easy" replied Ardeth "Evy you go and sit with Masala and keep as low as you can"

She picked up a glass of water and motioned to the guard that she was taking it over to the man on the couch. He nodded his agreement but watched her closely. She knelt on the floor and put the glass to the mans lips, he was starting to wake up and seeing her there was about to say something but she put her hand on his mouth and shook her head. As the others saw her kneeling down they made a grab for the other guards. Shots rang out and Pierre was hit in the chest and fell to the floor. Ardeth fought one of them while Hans took on another. Rick on the other hand found he had two to deal with until a shot rang out and one of them fell. Hans had shot him in the back. The one remaining guard lunged at Rick and the two of them ended up on the balcony, the guard trying to plunge his knife into Rick. The tables went over and the chairs, but none of their friends could get a clear shot at the man without hitting Rick, especially with the torrential rain that was falling making everything slippery and wet. Suddenly as Rick managed to get away for a second, the guard jumped over one of the chairs as he pounced on him and the two of them fell over the railings. Evy screamed and the others ran to the railing to see if they could see the two men.

"Oh my God" she screamed as she looked over the edge and saw nothing but blackness "They are both dead, I know it"

"They could be okay, there are ledges all along here, he may of only fallen 20ft or so. Come on, let's find some rope and try and find him" said Hans.

Johann found some rope in the kitchen and ran back to the balcony where the others were standing. Masala was holding onto the railings and his head at the same time, Ardeth was standing beside him.

"Come on.sit down.we can do this" said Ardeth

He helped the man sit down on one of the chairs that were stood up, as he did he looked up at Evy who was still crying. He stood up and went over to her while Hans was tying the rope to the railings.

"I am sure he is okay Evy, nothing can get him, if Imhotep couldn't then this mountain won't" he said.

She flung herself into his arms and he held her tight while she cried. It broke his heart to see her and hoped that they would be able to get Rick out of this situation without any injuries.

"Ardeth, we're ready.do you want to go down with me or stay here with Johann?"

"I'll go down, at least I can't see how high we are in the dark" he replied.

Johann helped the two men over the railings after the ropes were tied to their waists, it was dark, wet and cold up there but they had to find Rick. Lowering themselves down, they slowly made the treacherous decent.

"Be careful" shouted Evy above the storm.

As the two men plunged over the railings, Rick found himself falling and then hitting the ground hard, rolled down, hitting a few rocks before coming to a stop, how far down he didn't know but what he did know was that he was hurt.badly. For a few seconds he was conscious but then the pain made him black out. As the rain poured down on him, blood mingled with it and ran across the grass the was laying on. Hans reached the ledge and with his torch, saw the dead German laying across a rock, Rick shouldn't be too far away. Shining the torch around, he picked up the mans shape on a ledge about 15ft down. He pulled at Ardeths arm and pointed down, the man nodded and they carried on their decent. Reaching the man, Hans untied himself first and then helped Ardeth do the same, it seemed safe enough where they were if they were very careful. Making their way in the torch light to where Rick lay, they knelt down beside him. They saw the blood forming a puddle in the rain beside him.

"He's in a bad way, we have to try and get him up there" said Hans inbetween the thunder.

"How are we going to do that, we only have the rope and we could do more harm than good, we have no idea what injuries he has. There is a lot of blood there.Rick, Rick can you hear me?" said Ardeth as close to him as possible.

The man opened his eyes and moaned as Ardeth put his outer robe over him.

"We have to try and get you back to the house up there" he said "Can you tell us where you are hurt"

"My.head.I can't.move my legs" he managed to say "Not.going.to.make it.Ardeth..take care.of Evy.she loves you pal"

"Rick, don't talk like that, we'll have you up there in no time and then get you some medical help.just hang in there please" said Ardeth.

Hans grabbed the mans hand and Ardeth looked up at him in the rain to see him shaking his head. He knew at that moment that his long time friend was going to die and there was nothing he could do.

"He isn't going to make it Ardeth, his injuries are too bad. We can only try and make him comfortable" said Hans holding his coat over the man to stop the rain falling on him.

"Ar.Ardeth.can't hold on.much longer.promise me.you'll look.after Evy.sorry about.all..this" he gasped.

"I promise Rick.it's not your fault, you did what you thought was right.is there nothing we can do?" asked his friend.

The man shook his head slowly and as Ardeth held his hand, the man took his last breath and died. Ardeth found he had tears running down his face, mingling with the rain as he pulled his robe up over the mans face. He sat down on the grass, his head down. The other man put a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"There was nothing we could do Ardeth, his injuries were too bad"

"What am going to say to Evy.we can't leave him here" said Ardeth.

"Look, I'll stay here, you go back up and find something to wrap him in and then we shall take him up.okay"

Ardeth nodded and tied the rope back round him and started up the rope, using the other as an anchor to the house. Climbing over the railings, his eyes found Evy and the look on his face told her that Rick was dead. She collapsed in tears and Ardeth pulled her into his arms and held her tight, forgetting his feelings for after all, Rick was her husband and his best friend.

"We need something to wrap him in and to bring him back up here. Hans is still down there. His injuries were too bad Evy, there was nothing we could do for him, I am so sorry" he said.

"Did he say anything?" she asked.

"He told me that he loved you" he replied.

She knew there was something else and looking straight into his eyes, knowing they would never lie to her, she asked him what else he said.

"That was all" he said averting her gaze.

"Please I know he said something else Ardeth.please tell me, what ever it was" she asked him wiping the tears away.

"He told me to look after you.that was all" replied Ardeth.

He held her until Johann handed him a blanket and another rope was tied to the railings. Masala pointed to the dawn coming up over the mountain top.

"I know this is hard Evy but we have to get Rick and leave this place, we have no idea when this Hitler is going to arrive. If we are found here with these dead guards, then." said Masala.

"He is right.we will be shot or worse.come Ardeth I'll help you bring him up" said Johann.

Half an hour later, they had Rick laying on the balcony and the men untied the ropes and coiled them up, they would take them with them just in case they were useful. Evy looked at Rick, brushed the hair off his face and kissed him, then allowed the others to wrap him up again and secure the body so that they could take it back to the balloon. Ardeth spoke to Masala who was picking up the guns and reloading them, just in case they met any more guards on the way out.

"Masala.I want you to keep an eye on Evy, I can't do it.Rick was my friend and you know how I feel about her.it wouldn't be right, I couldn't trust myself at the moment" Ardeth told him.

"Okay, but she is going to ask why you are avoiding her, what do I tell her?" he asked.

"You'll think of something, I just don't want to be in this position at the moment, you understand"

Masala led Evy away behind Hans while Johann and Ardeth carried Rick. It was going to be quite hard making their way back to the balloon but the quicker they were out of there the better they would feel. At least the woods provided plenty of cover if there was any trouble. The power was still off and they found the stairs that the guards had used to ambush them in the first place. It was difficult to carry Rick down spiral stairs but they managed and were soon in the tunnel that led to the outside. As they got near the entrance, the sound of engines came floating down the road.

"Oh my God, soldiers or worse" said Hans "The trees.over there.run, now"

They all ran as fast as they could towards the trees to the right of the tunnel and just about made it when two tanks, followed by three cars and an enormous staff car carrying Hitler himself pulled up.

"Guards.take the Furher up to the house.you four, come with me, we will find out why there is no-one at the guardhouse, it could be trouble. The rest of you guard this entrance" shouted one of the men in a high ranking uniform.

There was a lot of running around and Ardeth and the rest of them could see Hitler being ushered into the tunnel, while the others stood outside. The officer and the other soldiers went running down the road towards the guardhouse.

"Come on.we'll have to go this way, it is more dense and provides more cover. We dare not be found now" said Hans.

They picked up their stuff and Rick and as quietly as they could clambered over the undergrowth and went further into the woods, relying on Hans and Johann to guide them back to the balloon without getting lost. Back at the Eagles Nest, Hitler found the bodies of the guards in the house and the mess in the main room and on the balcony. He was fuming, ranting and raving up and down as the General came back from the guardhouse.

"People have managed to get in here" shouted Hitler "There are bodies everywhere and the staff are tied up in the pantry. It is your job to protect me - if you don't come up with a reasonable explanation then you will be sent to the Russian Front - that is if I don't shoot you for incompetence"

The man tried to calm Hitler down but to no avail, he was livid and demanded that the bodies were disposed of and the place cleaned up before Goring, Speer and the others arrived later that day. The shouting also masked his fear, the fear that even here he was not safe anymore - people could get in and.then a thought struck him and he stormed into the office.

"General Von Strom - are any of the bodies here, civilians?" he demanded.

"Yes Mein Furher, upstairs, two men, one is Claus and the other is.."

"I know who the other one is.the books.they have also gone. Whoever it was in here, they knew exactly what they were looking for. I want soldiers to do a sweep of the area, they cannot get far, not on the mountain. I want them found and the books returned to me.now GO" shouted the man.

The general almost ran out of the room and relayed the orders to the guards who in turn phoned the garrison that was about a mile further down the mountain. They were told to go out immediately and find these people. He knew that his life would not be worth living if they came back empty handed. Luckily for the friends, Hans knew the area well and within a couple of hours they were a long way from the Eagles nest and the soldiers. They felt at ease enough to rest for a while. Evy who was exhausted, both physically and emotionally sat by a tree, her thoughts miles from there.

"We will rest for a while and then get back to the balloon, we should be there in about four hours.it will take a little longer because of coming this way and a bit more rugged" said Johann "once we get you back, we will leave you, we have to report what we have seen and a description of the house. We will try and go back in once Hitler goes back to Berlin and leave him a little present but after this we will need more men"

"You are going back.I know you have to but please be careful, we could never have done any of this without your help" said Ardeth.

"No thanks are needed, I am just sorry that one of you was killed. You don't realise just how helpful you were to us, we would never have gone in there without planning it before hand. You could be responsible for the demise of Hitler soon. Will she be alright?" asked Hans.

Ardeth looked across at Evy and his heart broke to see her like this but he gave nothing away as he answered them.

"She will be fine, in a few days I am sure. Evy is a very resilient person, a survivor, you would never believe what she has battled against over the years. She has a son back in Egypt, well he will be soon and a brother, they will look after her" he replied.

"She also has some good friends Ardeth, the Med-jai are great warriors.yes we have heard of you and recognised you at once. The stories from Egypt have also reached here - especially the ones about Hamunaptra" said Hans.

Ardeth's head shot round at the mention of this place but the look on the mens faces told him that nothing needed to be explained and he knew nothing would be mentioned. He shook the mans hand in a silent understanding. Hans told everyone to get ready, they were moving off. Masala helped Evy get her things while Ardeth made sure that the books were still secure. He would be glad to get them back to Egypt and able to deal with them.

Back at the Eagles Nest, the soldiers hadn't found anything and went back to the guardhouse. Hitler had calmed down a bit but demanded that the security was stepped up inside and outside the place, whether he was there or not. He could not risk anyone else getting in and maybe planting a bomb or something. He had survived one attempt on his life and he was scared that another would be made. The general persuaded him that shooting the staff would not help either, they were needed for the meetings in the next few days to feed the men and keep everything going smoothly. Hitler reluctantly agreed, much to their relief. Izzy had had no trouble whatsoever while he waited for his friends to come back, except when he heard tanks in the distance and thought they were heading his way but the noise subsided and all was quiet. As he lay there watching the trees, he heard a rustling and getting his gun, he aimed it at the trees but lowered it when he saw Ardeth come through the trees with the others. He ran to the ladder and climbed down. It was then he saw the body Masala was carrying.

"What happened, who's in the blanket..hang on where's Rick?" he asked.

Ardeth put a hand on his shoulder and no words were said but Izzy understood who it was and put his head down.

"You stupid son of a bitch.you had to get shot didn't you.what am I going to do now, I'll have no-one to moan at..I" he started to say tears showing in his eyes.

"Izzy.he wasn't shot, he fell down a mountain" said Evy "He liked you Izzy, liked you a lot, he told me.you always have us.will you take us home please?"

The man nodded and climbed back on board while the others said their goodbyes to Johann and Hans. Evy was the last to thank them for helping and she got a hug off both of them.

"Take care Evy and we are sorry about what happened" said Johann.

"Yeah so am I.but none of us would have been here in the first place if he hadn't have been so stupid. Greed is a killer in the end" she replied giving a slight smile.

They helped her up into the balloon and stood back while Izzy fired up the engines, slowly the thing lifted and waving to each other, they headed back towards Egypt, leaving the men to find their friends and hopefully do something about Hitler. Rick was laid at the back of the balloon but Evy sat up the other end, she didn't want to deal with that now, she needed to see Jonathan and Alex first. Masala went over to Ardeth.

"Are you going to talk to her, she asked me why you hadn't said anything since the balcony. She thinks it is because you never liked her in the first place and only spoke because of Rick. She is insecure, she needs you" said Masala.

"I know, but I don't know what to say to her. You were right that day when you said if it wasn't for Rick but I can't use his death to step into his shoes. It wouldn't be right" he said.

"No-one is asking you to jump into bed with her Ardeth, just be the friend she needs right now, what happens later then that is up to you. I am sure that is not on her mind either at the moment" replied Masala.

Ardeth knew he was right, he was just being silly. He poured two cups of coffee and taking a deep breath, walked over to where Evy sat. he handed her a cup.

"I owe you an apology Evy, I haven't known what to say to you since.since it happened. Please forgive me" he told her. "Ardeth, there is nothing to forgive.I just thought.oh it doesn't matter, I was being silly. There was nothing anyone could do, his luck ran out. If he had never taken that bracelet, none of this would have happened, none of us should have been here. It will be hard but I'll cope. To be honest we weren't as close as we were, not since Ahm Shere.my fault entirely, I pushed him away.I felt he wasn't good enough for me after I found out what my life was like. Then when I came to my senses, it was too late, we had already drifted too far apart. Oh we stayed together because of Alex and for other people but we didn't love each other as we had all those years ago" she told him.

"But neither of you said anything" replied Ardeth.

"I know, maybe we should have confided in you at least.but we never got round to it. We were the best of friends but as a married couple, that ended a long time ago. Anyway enough of that for now.what are you going to do with those books. It would be a shame to destroy them totally, is there any other way?" she asked.

"I don't know.when we came here I was intent on destroying them so that no- one will ever be able to raise Imhotep or anything else ever again. But now, because of Rick I am not so sure. There must be somewhere they can be put, under lock and key so that no-one has access to them" he replied.

"There is a vault in the basement of the museum. It hasn't been used for years, they could go in there and you could have the key. We'll deal with that when we get home. Stay here with me Ardeth, I don't want to be alone tonight.please"

He had dreaded her saying that but moved closer and allowed her to snuggle against him while he wrapped his arm round her shoulder. They were soon both asleep and Masala draped a blanket over them, then went to help Izzy.

"I still can't believe Rick is dead" said Izzy "Things will never be the same without him"

Masala looked over at Ardeth and Evy and shook his head as they headed towards Egypt, the sun starting to set on their right.

"No, I don't think they ever will, Izzy"

Possible sequel soon!!!!! Feedback please.