Elemental Guardian SagaCo Writer Sohkarra

by Trynia Merin

A new forensic scientist working on mummies for Amanda at the Museum, encounters the mummies and her own destiny as a Guardian wearing St. George's and St. Andrew's armor!

4. Public Eye

DISCLAIMER: The usual…The characters JaKal, Presley, Nefertina, Scarab, and Armon are properties of DIC Entertainment. Princess Sohkarra is my own creation. And I thank my good bud, Trynia Merin, for the use of her unique characters, the twins, Marianne and Cameron Ellis.

In the Public Eye

26 June 1999

by Sohkarra and Trynia Merin

****

"I just heard it again on the magic box," Nefertina said to Sohkarra.

"What?" Sohkarra answered. The two young women were getting ready to go to the gym for their workout, which had become a favorite past-time for both of them. They loved the activity and watching both the men and women who frequented these places.

"Strange sightings of ancient-type creatures in the city." Nefertina replied. "I know sometimes we're not always as discreet as we should be, but I didn't think we were that bad."

"We're not." Sohkarra said, looking at her friend. "For I put the spell on all of you before you go out. I think there is something deeper here. Didn't you once tell me that Scarab put out money for people to look for all of you?"

"Yeah, that was before you came back." Nefertina remembered the man she had met during that time; Bix. How he had been offered $10,000 if he could come up with proof that mummies really did walk among the living in this modern city. And he almost got it too! "But he doesn't usually repeat a plan that hasn't been successful."

But now, with all those documentaries about ancient Egypt and all the mysteries of an ancient culture, new interest in ancient Egypt was being brought to light.

Marianne had suggested to them that they all go see it. And she had talked them into going to the theater one night recently to see Hollywood's latest iteration with the movie, 'The Mummy'. They'd had to sit there for two hours and listen to Rath's critique of the proceedings. Needless to say, by the end of it, Sohkarra, Nefertina, and even Marianne were ready to strangle him.

So, now, with all the media coverage of their ancient way of life to be seen, Sohkarra had noticed that more and more tourists were making their way further and further into the bowels of the museum and a few had actually found their way into the main area of the sphinx where their sarcophaguses were kept. This was cause for alarm for all concerned.

"Let's take a rain check on the gym for now and go riding around. I want to get a feel for the mood of the city. Especially now that both Rapses' and my possessions are on exhibit." Sohkarra said to her friend. 'Talk about desecration' she thought to herself.

And Nefertina, always glad for a chance to go out for a ride on the jetcycles, nodded. With a call out to Armon, who was busily watching "Mr. Science" on the television to watch over the sphinx, they were off.

In the meantime, JaKal, who was escorting Presley on a trip to the mall to the movie theater to see the new Star Wars - Phantom Menace, were talking about the incidents in the sphinx as well.

"I don't want to alarm your sister," JaKal was saying to the young Prince as they wandered through the mall with no particular destination in mind. To anyone passing, they looked like a typical father and son who were enjoying each other's company. No one knew the man with this young boy was in fact a 3,500 year old reborn royal guardian from ancient Egypt. He was dressed a blue and golden trimmed sweatsuit with sneakers. "But we must sake plans in the event we have to leave the sphinx for a while my Prince."

"Do you really think it is that serious JaKal?" Presley asked.

"The lion can never be too careful when protecting its den." Replied the head guardian with another of his infamous sayings. Most of the time no one knew what he was talking about. And to Presley, this was one of those. And then seeing that Presley was giving him that look again, said, "Those three incidences of someone coming into the main chamber was too close. It was fortunate that Sohkarra was there to put a spell of forgetting on them and sending them on their way. For no matter what, we must still keep our existence a secret, for yours and the Princess' sake." And he couldn't help but think to himself that she had missed one, and thus the trouble. And of course Rath had been quick to pick up on her mistake and had indeed done some "correctional" training on his young mistress, much to that said mistress' pain.

"My mom is going out of town for several days to a museum curator's conference in Los Angeles. She is trying to find one of her friends to come stay with me while she is gone." Presley confided. "And I think I will get Mom to let you and Sohkarra stay. You all met when I got sick that one time and mom said she seemed okay. So what would be the harm in her staying?"

"My Prince." JaKal started.

"That way some of you guys could come too, if you had to." Presley continued, as if JaKal hadn't spoken. And he looked at his guardian who appeared to be seriously considering the plan. "It would be no problem for you to stay as well. After all, she thinks that you two are married. And I could say that Armon is her cousin or something."

"It might just work my Prince." JaKal looked at the boy proudly. In spite of everything that had happened since they had been reunited, he was very fond of this modern boy who now hosted the reborn spirit of his deceased Prince. "I will consider it, but I hope it will not be necessary."

******************************************************************

That night proved to be very short for all of them. Everyone was in for the night and reposing peacefully in their sarcophagi. With one exception: Sohkarra was staying up late reading a new novel that she had picked up on one of her excursions to the great covered marketplace in a bookstore she had found there.

Nefertina had confiscated it and read it first. And upon giving it back to Sohkarra, had laughingly told her to be by herself when she read it. And not let JaKal know she was reading such material. Now she was well aware of what her friend had meant. She was astounded at some of the writing in these books. Almost like step by step instructions. And knowing what she did about human relations, it made her blush just to read it. She didn't understand all of what she read. She made a mental note to ask Marianne about some of the terminology's and such. But she did find it entertaining. And perhaps she would show it to JaKal. Maybe it would give him pause to think. For even though they had declared their mutual feelings, things were still moving slowly between them. And sometimes she wanted something from him, but didn't exactly know what. And there were these inexplicable urges. And there were the looks he gave her sometimes.

'Oh well, maybe I'll figure it out someday.' She thought to herself. And in the midst of her musings, she heard the sounds. Sirens were blaring from outside the sphinx! And she immediately left the peace that was now gone from her room to get her guardians. But of course they had already heard and come out of their slumber.

"What in Ra's name is that?" demanded Rath.

"Where is the Princess?" piped up Armon.

"I'm here everybody." Sohkarra called out to them. "And by the sounds, I'd say we are in major trouble. It would seem that one of those we found in the sphinx escaped my spell of forgetting."

There was no panic, as to how the plan of where everyone was to go had been discussed. They had had the foresight to get the vehicles out and hidden in a place they had found on one of JaKal's scouting trips. So they would have to make their getaway on foot.

"Does everyone remember the plan?" asked JaKal.

"We do!" went up the chant.

JaKal stepped up to Sohkarra with a quick "Quickly Princess! Change us over before they get in!"

She nodded and spoke the chant. And not a moment too soon! For just as they were changed, a whole slew of policemen stormed the sphinx.

They came in, weapons drawn. "Who are you people and what are you doing here?" demanded the one identified as leader.

"We are night maintenance workers maintaining the new exhibits," said JaKal with his usual quick thinking. He used the fact that Sohkarra had changed their clothing as well as their appearance.

So they did indeed look like museum workers. In fact they looked very convincing. "You can confirm our identities with the curator, Amanda Carnavon."

The leader rubbed his chin as he thought about this. "All right, I will. But first, you are all coming with us downtown until we can talk to Ms. Carnavon."

"Downtown?" asked Rath. "As in arrested?"

"That's the general idea." Confirmed the leader.

This was a development that was most appalling! It just would not do for either the Princess or royal guardians to be put in so common a place! It just was not going to happen!

Armon piped up and called out the others. "Hey guys! I think there's a harmless way to handle this!"

And as everyone looked at him wonderingly, he pointed to his face. And all at once they picked up on what he meant.

"He's right." Nefertina said.

"That happens." JaKal answered. And all of them together simultaneously changed their normal bandaged faces to something that defied description. Even Sohkarra had never seen them like this. She could only stare at her four guardians as their entire countenances changed.

The effect on the policemen was immediate and effective. They were literally shocked right down to their shoes! The only time any of them had seen anything like this was in one of those class B horror flicks they used to go to on a Saturday afternoon. And seeing that the men were shocked still, Rath put a simple sleep spell on them to ensure they would all be able to get away in safety. They never knew what hit them!

"WOW!!" Sohkarra exclaimed. "That was so cooooool! How did you guys do that?" It had surprised her too at first, but she was used to expecting the unexpected from her friends. It seemed this new time had changed them all more than any of them would admit.

"We have never figured it out ourselves." Nefertina answered her. "Looked different, didn't I?"

"I'll say." Said Sohkarra. "I wonder if I can do that too." But before she could try, Nefertina was walking over to Rath, intent on giving him a piece of her mind on what he had just done.

"Nice going Rath!" Nefertina stormed at him after seeing what he had done. "Now they'll be looking for us when they wake up!"

"Yeah Rath!" Armon also piped in.

"Would you two rather be incarcerated?" Rath shot back. "For that is what they had planned for us!"

"Enough you two!" Sohkarra got in between the two of them. "Did you also add the spell of forgetting on them?"

Rath looked put out at that. "Of course Princess. And I guarantee I didn't miss one!"

The implication was not lost on Sohkarra. For she knew she had goofed and missed one of the trespassers and that was why they were in their current dilemma. Plus the fact that Rath had grasped the opportunity to play teacher again, and grilled her on forgetting spells. But still she couldn't help giving Rath a nasty look plus for good measure she stuck her tongue out at him because he couldn't resist mentioning it.

"Really Princess, of all the un-royal-like behavior," Rath responded, giving her a most disapproving look.

"If you are all finished bickering, I suggest we get to our respective destinations." JaKal interjected, running out of patience with the bickering.

"You are right JaKal," said Sohkarra as she came to stand next to him. And looking at her remaining guardians, she reminded them of the rendezvous tomorrow night at the museum to collect their sarcophagi and for her to renew her spell so they would retain their human features. The spell had to be renewed about every 24 hours, for that was the maximum amount of time her blush of life spell as she called it, would last. After that, they would revert back to their bandaged forms. And under the circumstances, that could prove disastrous indeed! And they all acknowledged.

Rath and Nefertina departed for Marianne's home as had been previously arranged.

And JaKal, taking Sohkarra's hand, along with Armon, departed for Presley's home. They would have to be careful, for Amanda was not due to leave until later in the morning. They would come back tomorrow night for their sarcophagi.

*******************************************************************

Marianne was having that nightmare again. At least that seemed the logical explanation to the strange tapping sounds coming from her window. Instinctively she reached beneath the pillow of her bed for the handle of her .38 automatic.

She silently thanked the fact that she lived in a country that permitted the use of firearms for personal protection, unlike Great Britain. As the latch clicked, she clicked off the safety, and whirled to an upright sitting position. Gripping the pistol in one hand, she whipped aside the bedclothes. Two shadowy figures slipped in through the jimmied window.

"Hold it right there!" Marianne shouted, gun at the ready. "I've got a 38, and I know well how to use it! What the bloody heck are you doing in my house!"

The light flipped on. Two very embarrassed figures stood sheepishly at gunpoint.

In his long blue trench coat and cap Rath raised his hands over his head. Beside him in a leather jacket and tall black boots stood Nefertina. Both were in their blush of life forms.

"Rath, Nefertina! What in blazes is this all about?" she gasped, holding her chest as she still kept the gun leveled at them. "You scared the life out of me..."

"Er, I know this is a rather awkward time... but would you mind pointing that object the other way..." Rath said, trying to be as calm and diplomatic as possible.

"We've had enough guns pointed in our faces tonight..." Nefertina added. "Boy have we ever!"

"What are you talking about?" Marianne asked, lowering her weapon. Nefertina and Rath breathed a collective sigh of relief as she engaged the safety and placed the gun beneath her pillow again.

"We didn't want you to end up like us," Nefertina joked. "But we didn't have a choice..."

"There has been a slight change of plans," Rath coughed. He couldn't help but notice her nightclothes: the red camisole and brief loose lacy shorts.

"I'll say. You are frightfully early. If this is some sort of a practical joke... I'm not really amused..." she sighed.

"Let me explain... but permit me first apologize for scaring you like that, my dear," Rath coughed, picking up a silk bathrobe that draped over one chair. Even though Nefertina was also a woman, Rath felt some guilt about having woken Marianne up in such a state in her nightclothes.

Walking over to the nonplussed scientist he held it before him, throwing it over her bare shoulders.

"What's this in aid of?" she asked, a bit amused now, as Rath stood betwixt her and Nefertina.

"You've seen me like this before, and Nefertina's a friend..."

Nefertina was trying to keep from laughing at Rath's old-fashioned modesty. Since Marianne was his loved one... he was naturally protective of her in many aspects. "Er, uh well... never mind that... but something most distressing has happened. You recall that we are under close public scrutiny..."

"Yes, but I did not expect you to drop by quite this early," she said, shaking her head. "It is half past five in the morning!"

"We are painfully aware of that," Rath yawned. "But we were discovered..."

"Oh no, you've got to be joking..." Marianne said.

Nefertina grumbled. "And if we didn't scare them off... we coulda been

arrested!"

"Where are the others?" Marianne yawned, rubbing her eyes. The sun was just beginning to peek over the horizon through her open window. Rather wearily she sat down on her bed once more.

Of all the awakenings this ranked near the top of rudeness and abruptness.

"At Amanda's house," said Nefertina. "Presley got his mother to think that 'Jack' and 'Jaime' are going to be staying with him while she's away at a conference."

"Lucky for them that conference came up when it did." Said Marianne. "It couldn't have been planned any better."

"We will be in greater danger then now," Rath said gravely, sitting next to her on the bed. "For until we can get our sarcophagi back and hidden away, we will be unable to recharge."

Marianne's face filled with concern, now that she knew the true nature of their emergency.

"What do I do with you till then..." Marianne muttered, as Rath's hands rested on her shoulders.

He really was quite sorry he'd frightened her so badly, and was trying ever so hard to make up for it in any way he could. "A good thing you didn't wake Cameron up. But I've got to get to work...and..."

"I... could come to work with you," Rath suggested. "That is... if you don't mind. I have always desired to see a modern science lab..."

"That might be just the thing... of course," Marianne said. "But Nefertina..."

"Uh we're all meeting there anyway," said Nefertina, sitting on top of Marianne's clothing piled upon her dressing table chair. "But not until tonight so we can get our sarcophagi out."

"You're welcome to stay in my guestroom till then, Nefertina," Marianne yawned. "Good grief! I could murder a cup of coffee... but you must stay out of sight till Cameron leaves..."

"We will try to be a bit more discreet... my dear," Rath assured her. Again Marianne shook her head and yawned deeply. Just when she thought she'd figured this crew, they surprised her yet again! She was beginning to think she never would get them figured out; even if she lived to be their age!

********************************************************************

Later that morning, Marianne and the others all rondevous'd at the museum. All of them fairly dashed into the main lobby where they had left their sarcophagi. For they were tiring, and felt in great need of rest. But, lo and behold, they were gone! Missing! Only Presley didn't seem surprised.

"Oh yeah," he said. "I forgot to tell you with everything going on...."

Sohkarra stepped up to him, hands on his shoulders. "What is it? Do you know what has happened to our sarcophagi?"

"Yeah." He responded. "Mom briefly told me that they had taken them to a secret storage area where they put all the stuff until they can catalog it and all."

And as everyone looked at him, "And that Cameron Ellis was in charge of the movement."

"Oh great." Muttered Sohkarra. "She didn't tell you where he had taken them?"

"Uh......no."

"Young Prince, are you sure about this?" questioned JaKal. For he, and indeed everyone there was aware of the gravity of the situation. Without their sarcophagi, they could not recharge, and indeed would grow weaker until........

"Let me find out from Cameron where he put them." Marianne stepped in. "If he's indeed got them, he'll not be able to hold off on telling me. He's told me often enough of his frustration when it came to Sohkarra's disappearance and that of her sarcophagi. So he'll be fairly busting a gut to let me know."

"Let's us hope so," Armon interjected. "Because I'm really tired."

"As are we all Armon," JaKal reminded him. "And if Scarab were to find out about this, we would be at his mercy."

"Don't forget JaKal," Sohkarra started. "I don't have to recharge as you all do." And she gave him a look. "So I guess I'll have to play "guardian" to all of you until we find that which we seek. And plus, I know a couple of spells that will keep you all going until then."

"It's our job to take care of you and the Prince; not yours to take care of us." JaKal answered her. For in spite of his personal feelings toward the Princess, he never lost sight of the fact that he was still a guardian to the royal house. And in this case, the duty must come first!

"We both owe you guys over a whole bunch of times JaKal." Presley spoke for he and his spirit self's sister. She nodded in concurrence.

"Well, that's just ducky." Muttered Rath. "I feel a whole lot better about this whole business now."

"I heard that Rath." Sohkarra said, giving her tutor a wicked look.

"I have faith in you Princess." Said Armon at the same time he gave a sharp jab in the arm to Rath, which earned him a dirty look from the Scribe.

"Thank you my friend," she smiled back at him.

"So if you don't have to recharge yourself, what was the big deal with keeping your sarcophagus?" Marianne wondered.

"I kept it for sentimental reasons." Sohkarra answered. "My father had it designed especially for me. And I do want it back."

"Oh."Marianne answered. She could certainly understand that. For what she had briefly seen of Sohkarra's burial vessel, it was indeed very beautiful. It had the engraved horse head designed after the horse she had loved in life and was most unusual. And she could also understand her brother's equal determination to keep it, now that he had found it. This just kept getting better and better!

And just then, the blush of life spell wore off everyone and they were once again standing there in their bandaged forms. Marianne had seen this before, but it never failed to amaze her. No one would ever believe this!

"I guess it's time then." Sohkarra said, looking at them. She quickly said the chant that would change her friends over to look like normal human beings. And when she was done, no one looking at them would ever suspect that they were in actuality 3,500 year old Egyptian mummies.

And she looked over her work, pleased with what she saw. And Marianne, again, no matter how many times she saw this, couldn't get over it. Her scientific mind still had trouble grasping the magical aspects. But this was one power of Sohkarra's that she could live with, for it was great to know Rath in both his mummified and human-like form.

Some of Sohkarra's powers, she didn't know about and wasn't at all sure she wanted to, for Rath had told her what he knew of her training by some mysterious individuals known only as the 'Masters'. And she hoped the situation never arose where Sohkarra felt the need to use those powers Rath seemed so concerned about. For once or twice he had told her of his concern that they may one day get out of hand and the Princess would not be able to control them.

"Shall we get started then?" stated JaKal. He was most adamant in starting the search immediately. And as was his way, once his mind was on something, he would not deviate until whatever need had brought it on had been satisfied.

***********************************************************************

That afternoon, after an unsuccessful search for the sarcophagi, amused glances fell upon Marianne and Rath as they walked into the main lobby together. For they had heard rumors that Marianne was dating someone, and could this handsome olive skinned man be that very gentleman in question? Marianne thought about where this had all started. She recalled a conversation they had had at the sphinx long ago:

"I simply cannot spend any more time from work to come over here... and besides my brother will wonder where I have disappeared to..."

"I suppose you could copy down the spells and study them in my absence. For the more magic you master, the less of a threat Scarab will be..."

"Rath, I don't know how to read this..." she sighed. "What am I going to do?"

"It's quite obvious. I will have to teach you to read hieroglyphics," Rath had sighed, about a week after they'd come to know each other. That involved treks to the Sphinx, for a tutoring lesson alongside Presley as Rath, on orders from both Sohkarra and JaKal, taught them both.

Marianne had a bit of experience in it already, her brother having taught her some of the monosyllabic sounds. What stumped her was the actual ancient Egyptian itself. Within a month she had come to learn a little bit more. Rath's comprehension spells helped somewhat. But she actually had to learn a good deal the old fashioned way. Soon she outstripped Presley's knowledge, and he joked that she knew more than he. Rath smiled with pride. He had not lost his touch after 3500 years. Yet this exchange of information was hardly one way. In turn Marianne taught Rath much about the science of the new time. For now given this opportunity the proverbial tables were turned. She had the chance to return the compliment this very day.

Eagerly Rath joined Marianne in the laboratory, examining all the scientific equipment.

"Great Ptah what intriguing equipment you possess," he muttered, scratching his chin as he regarded the spectrometer.

"Hmm, this stuff's outdated compared with what the pharmaceutical companies and labs with more funding have..." she explained.

"Considering the fact I have not seen many modern labs, would I know the difference?" Rath quipped with a slight smile. "How does this work?"

"Er, that's a spectrometer. It works on the principle of light adsorption..."

"Do tell," Rath murmured.

However, when it came to explaining the scientific principles upon which Chemistry was based, he was as lost as she regarding the language. Their exchange proved very interesting indeed. Marianne demonstrated the use of electrophoresis in separating DNA samples. Intrigued he watched as she took a small skin scraping from his arm and threw it into a strange brew. What followed were a complicated series of mixes of potions she called "isolation" and "extraction."

Cameron wandered into the chemistry lab, hands thrust into his pockets. He hoped to catch Marianne there. She'd seen him briefly at home, where he'd only recently arrived about a fortnight ago after his accident. Because she'd been kidnapped, she'd been unable to visit him. Then inextricably she'd turned up, safe and well. Yet she claimed to remember nothing of her ordeal. Somehow he suspected there was more to her story. Yet his respect for his twin's privacy overrode his curiosity, and he kept the subject unmentioned.

Now as he wandered into her lab, he noticed she had another visitor. As usual she was huddled over her laboratory counter, with several trays of specimen in hand. What was unusual about this was the tall thin man with tanned skin who stood next to her. Emerald green eyes scrutinized her every move. Like Marianne he wore a white lab coat, and had the appearance of a scientist. Upon his head he wore a fez, and laboratory glasses with the side shields. The ensemble gave him a distinguished air, the black silk tassel hanging right beside one ear.

"Now for this step, I am isolating the DNA. I must first pour the gel..." she explained, holding up a beaker of thick jelly. He watched as she poured it between the two glass panes. "Now I make my wells at the top of the frame...then as I wait for the gel to cure, I can isolate my sample from my raw specimen..."

"Hem," said Cameron, trying to appear as casual as he could, but it was

difficult in light of what had just happened. In addition to the fact that he'd heard from some of his friends that his sister had been dating someone lately.

Was this stranger the one? And plus the fact of his exciting news that one of the most important parts of the Sohkarra excavation; namely the missing sarcophagi, which had disappeared shortly after its arrival, had been found! And that was the Sohkarra sarcophagi! The only downfall was the still missing mummy. For it was rumored that her body had not been treated in the same manner as other royals. He had discovered a discarded section of papyrus written by an unknown author in Sohkarra's tomb. And from what he could discern from it, it had implied that there had been a severe deviation from the norm during her mummification process. And in all his excavations, he had only found this type of documentation in her tomb. And he desperately wanted to see if it was true! And why would they have chosen this particular Princess to perform this out of context ritual on? What was so different about this lady? And what would have been the desired end result? He couldn't wait to tell his sister and get a look at the mystery man in her life. And he just let himself into the lab where he knew she'd be working.

"Oh, hello Cam," she said, a bit surprised. The other fellow glanced up at Cameron, a bit irritated that the demo had been interrupted. Rath had seen pictures of Cameron in her house, but this was the first time he had encountered him at such proximity.

"Who's your henchman?" he asked, with an amused smile, trying to act nonchalant. There was present a bit of challenge in his grey eyes. After all, this was Cameron's sister he was with!

"Er... This.. is my friend... Mr. Rutherford Higgins... who has a bit of an interest in what I'm doing, since it relates to Egyptology... so I thought I'd give him a demo..."

Rath, coming to his true love's aid, "Your sister's study of antiquities is quite... intriguing to me, sir. Accordingly she had promised to demonstrate her research techniques. For I have an interest in modern scientific..."

"Yes, yes," said Marianne, cutting him off. Cameron sensed she did so because this man might be telling too much otherwise. "Rutherford... this is my brother Cameron Ellis. The Egyptologist..."

"Are you the gentleman my sister is presently seeing?" Cameron asked, extending one hand to Rath. Slowly they shook hands, rather awkwardly.

"If you mean... are we involved in dating rituals... yes..." said Rath, choosing his words carefully.

Cameron chuckled, having taken the words as something of a joke. "You must excuse me, I am rather at a disadvantage..."

"I have been wanting you both to meet, but I didn't figure on today," Marianne said, a bit surprised.

"Would you excuse us, sir?" Cameron said, taking his sister's hand.

"You might have told me," he whispered into her ear. "Why haven't you introduced him to me till now?"

"You were so busy with catching up... I didn't want to burden you," Marianne sighed. "I'm sorry. He's really very nice..."

"Is this that fellow who has an interest in Egyptology?" asked Cameron. "I don't believe I've met him if he is a proper Egyptologist..."

Marianne winced at his use of the word "proper." Since her time with Rath she had come to see just how stuffy and arrogant Egyptologists could get. Cameron was a product of the "old school" which was rather conservative. "Let's just say he's from Egypt, and Egyptology is his main hobby. I had him help out on some of the displays in the museum..."

"Is he an artist? That name doesn't sound quite Egyptian to me..."

"Yes. He can duplicate any ancient artifact with remarkable ability," said she.

"And if you must know, he changed his name for professional reasons. Now if you don't mind, he's staring right at us. Do try to be civil to him.."

"I won't give him the Spanish inquisition, Mary," he sighed. Discretely they wandered back over to where Rath was watching the gel cure in the

electrophoresis glass frame.

"Am I to understand that you are responsible for the work of art done in my sister's apartment?"

Cameron said, glancing at Rath. He tried to pick a conversation topic that might tell him more about this new acquaintance of his sister's without being too obvious about it.

"Most assuredly sir," Rath nodded, a look of pride in those green eyes.

"May I congratulate you on your skills. It isn't often that I see an amateur attempt so closely resemble the real thing. Why even the artists who sell those paintings in Egypt on the papyrus don't render them as skillfully as you have..."

"An amateur?" Rath said, a bit piqued. But he felt Marianne's gentle fingers touch his lips as she shushed him.

"Rutherford... is a bit sensitive about being called an amateur... after all, he's been doing such work for a good part of his life... and he is quite an expert in his line of work."

"Really... pity we didn't know of you till now," Cameron said.

"Rutherford has also been assisting us with some of the displays in the museum.

The recent vandalism..."

"You mean to say he repainted the main exhibit walls as well?" Cameron murmured.

"Allow me to congratulate you yet again, sir. I meant no disrespect..."

"None taken, sir," Rath said, inclining his head. He bit his tongue, knowing he had to try to be civil to Marianne's brother. He could not afford to leave any clues as to his true identity, especially when it came to Egyptologists.

"I wonder... where in Egypt are you from?" Cameron asked. He was trying to tactfully lead into the subject of the found artifacts. Rath looked a bit alarmed for a second, and rapidly glanced at Marianne.

She nodded.

"I suppose you'd call it Thebes," Rath said, a hint of amusement in his eyes. "According to the...er...ruins you must have encountered there..."

The humor was not lost on Cameron, for he chuckled. Somehow the tension slipped to a tolerable level. "Indeed yes I have been there. I excavated the temple at Karnack... as a field study. Have you been there yourself?"

"Er... let's just say... I have been there on a few occasions myself. I come from somewhere around Thebes.."

"Mmmm. Marianne also went on a dig there... as a volunteer. Cheers," Cameron nodded.

"Rather dusty work, out under the hot sun, eh?"

Rath glanced back at Marianne, confused. "Er, I think the gel is ready for injection..." she broke in.

***********************************************************************

From one side, Nefertina and Sohkarra looked into the small lab. They'd come with Rath to look at the displays in the museum regarding the Sohkarra exhibit. And had been rather impressed at the quality of the overall exhibit. The Pharaoh and Queen Mother had indeed ensured a worthy tribute was made to launch their beloved daughter on her premature journey to the after world.

"Geez, I'd forgotten I even had some of this stuff." Sohkarra commented to Nefertina. She looked at what occupied the attention of her friend when she didn't respond right away. Now she caught Nefertina looking at the back of the man who was responsible for excavating the tomb of Rapses' sister. Quite embarrassed at the next series of thoughts she realized the rear view was rather appealing. Especially as it was draped in soft corduroy pants and attractive herringbone tweed jacket.

Sohkarra gave her a light jab in the arm. When Nefertina looked at her friend, she saw by the look that the Princess had picked up on her thoughts. Nefertina blushed profusely. Sohkarra laughed and whispered in her ear, "I agree with you my friend. Those do look good from the rear. Shall we see if he looks as good from the front?" But she herself already knew, for she had met Cameron Ellis before in the museum. And she knew that her friend would be pleasantly surprised.

"What would JaKal say if he heard you now?" asked a still embarrassed Nefertina. But the idea of seeing the rest of the mystery man did appeal to her. "And why do I get the feeling you know him?"

"It never hurts to look." she replied. "And JaKal understands this, for he is quite intrigued with the way these modern women dress. Just because we're dead, doesn't mean we're blind. And then Sohkarra proceeded to pull Nefertina with her toward the laboratory. "And yeah, I do know him. I met him the same day I met Marianne during Scarab's little tirade. And besides, you better than any know JaKal is the only one for me."

"Oh……" Summoning her courage she let Sohkarra lead her into the laboratory.

"Hey, mind if we take a look back here, Marianne?" she asked.

Marianne looked at she who spoke. She had an idea what was going by seeing the amused look on Sohkarra's face and the embarrassed look on Nefertina's face.

Sohkarra was at it again. A modern day Cupid; even with everything that was happening. "Sure. Just put on lab coats and safety glasses there in that box by the door."

"Hullo, who have we here?" Cameron asked as he heard the feminine voices. Then his eyes met Nefertina's. She had the most exquisite grey eyes that smiled at his greyish-blue ones. And then he acknowledged Sohkarra. "You're the lady from the museum? Jaime, right?"

"I'm glad you remember me." she answered.

"How could I not? Your knowledge is most impressive." he commented before once again looking toward Nefertina.

"Well hello yourself," said Nefertina shyly, taking in the front view of the handsome blonde gentleman. He helped her into a lab coat from the wall hanger.

"Are you that Egyptologist guy that everyone's been talking about? The one that excavated that Princess Sohkarra..."

Sohkarra poked her in the ribs. And when Nefertina looked at her, "That Princess Sohkarra?" she lip synched to her friend. Nefertina's reply was a shrug and a bird-that-ate-the-canary look. "Why yes... and may I inquire as to what the name of this attractive girl is?" Cameron asked Marianne, momentarily forgetting the rest of the reason he was here.

"Yes. This is Tina... a friend of mine... also from Egypt," Marianne said.

"They're both new in the area... And you being an Egyptologist might get quite a rise about meeting them..."

"Enchanted, I'm sure," Cameron said, kissing Nefertina's hand. She laughed. "It would be a pleasure to make your acquaintance..."

"Marianne said you loved motorcycles..." said Nefertina.

"Why... yes..." he said, still a bit taken with her. "I have a smashing idea. How would everyone like a cup of tea at my place? It's nearly half past four. And I have the most smashing news."

This made Marianne's eyebrows shoot up in curiosity. Noticing her brother looked entirely too pleased with himself that was not entirely from meeting a pretty girl, she hoped for the best.

Sohkarra too, was concerned. For she could sense an excitement emanating from the young man. She sensed that he unknowingly would be able to tell her about their missing sarcophagi. For her guardians could not recharge without them. And indeed would grow weaker without them. So she too agreed to accompany the small party to Cameron's apartment.

Calling Rath over to her, she said in a low voice, "I think he knows something that may help us."

"Your senses tell you this?" asked Rath. He knew they must find their sarcophagi and the Princess with her inner sense would be their best hope of finding them.

And if she said the brother of Marianne knew something, he would trust her instincts.

"Not specifically." She answered. "But he has got a secret that he desperately wants to tell. And who's to say it would not be about our missing items."

"Sounds great to me," Nefertina said in a dreamy type voice. "Only do you have hot chocolate?" This tone of voice drew curious looks from both Sohkarra and Rath. Neither had ever heard Nefertina speak in this way before. But an idea took shape in Sohkarra's mind. Rath wondered at the sudden, plotting look that came over his young charge's face. And he just knew she had something in mind.

Soon they all sat around the living room, with a pot of Darjeeling and plates of cucumber sandwiches and cakes. Nefertina and Cameron chatted about what it was like to take a motorcycle ride along the Nile River in spring. "I actually traveled from Saqqara to the site in Thebes in such a manner," he explained as he pulled out an atlas and turned to the maps of Egypt. Nefertina stared in amazement at the detailed picture.

"That's far out," said she. "What scribe... uh... artist did that?"

"It's the newest in maps. Accurate to a tenth of a mile from a satellite. And here is an image of the site where I found the tomb of Princess Sohkarra..."

Nefertina saw as he pointed to a royal tomb site near the Valley of the Kings. A new series of tombs had been unearthed there. In a side chamber of the mastaba of Rapses was his sister's. They'd only recently broken through the hidden false door to find it. "It was almost intact... like that of Rapses. But due to the curse" no one else had the nerve to dig there...till recently. Dr. Mohammed Aziz and myself lead the team two years ago that excavated... you would not believe the remarkable condition of the tombs..."

"Humph," Rath muttered. "All that careful work gone to waste. Why can you not leave the tombs alone?"

"I know there are those who would say that it was tantamount to desecration," said Cameron to him. "But what better way to gain immortality than to have those in the future know the name of Sohkarra? And immortality was what the embalmers wanted for her. For she had a most unusual reputation for a Princess.." And getting into his subject, "Did you know that she is remembered as being the first warrior Princess, and that she indeed died in the defense of her brother? But unfortunately, they were both killed during the same incident. Along with their guardians. I want to make sure the world knows about her." And then almost to himself, "I only wish I could find the mummy. I can't believe someone would take just it and the sarcophagus and nothing else."

Sohkarra was a little uncomfortable with hearing herself talked about as if she was "dead". If only he knew!

"You'd be surprised." Nefertina muttered. Rath and Sohkarra gave her a severe warning look. Marianne's head shot up. Luckily Cameron was immersed in thought and did not notice. Nefertina stuck her tongue out at Rath, who snorted. Desecration of tombs went against everything he believed in as a Scribe. When he'd first realized what Marianne did, he was leery. But then he realized she was not responsible for the excavation of the mummies. And she studied them without opening the sarcophagi.

Her special x-ray equipment and endoscopes took only the minutest of shavings leaving the rest intact.

"That's right," Marianne said to him. "Pharaohs like Tutankhamen and Rapses would not be known because their names were obliterated."

And Cameron kept on plugging, "And Sohkarra is one of the few tombs found whom the occupant was not a Pharaoh, or even a Prince. Now we can find out more about the royal ladies. For they were the power behind the throne. And now they live again... and in a sense they have gained immortality, which was every Egyptian's ultimate goal. For isn't it a requisite...And the public is already voicing their enthusiasm. And in this day of equal rights and all those women's issues, who could ask for a better representative? For Sohkarra was the embodiment of what a female could achieve; even in her own time! And there was another…...possibly a another guardian of Sohkarra and Rapses!"

Sohkarra thought this to be very interesting indeed. She had never thought of herself as a role model before. She just did what she did because it was in her nature to do so. The blood had just run through her. She'd never thought much about it. And she had enjoyed doing it.

"The name must be spoken and revered," Rath murmured. "For eternal life to be gained." But he couldn't help but wonder who this "other" may be that Cameron was referring to.

"And the name of Sohkarra will become as well known as that of Tutankhamun if I have anything to say about it. For she is my greatest find! And plus I found something else in her tomb that was most interesting. And mysterious."

This latest statement brought a stricken look into Sohkarra's eyes that Rath immediately caught. "What type of 'something' might that be Cameron?" she asked.

"I can tell you all because you're friends of Mary's." he started. "But I found a piece of papyrus that suggested that her body was not treated in the same fashion as other royals."

Rath now understood what had brought the look onto Sohkarra's face. Nefertina noticed it too. This did not bode well. Marianne noted their looks, not yet understanding what had brought it on. So what if Cameron had found a piece of papyrus? It happened all the time during the excavations. But the look on Sohkarra's face told her it was a bit more than that. And she dreaded to think what it could possibly mean. Could it have something to do with the fact that she appeared human where her guardians didn't without her blush of life spell on them? The secret of her humanization was not something Sohkarra had ever discussed with her. It was one of the secrets she had chosen to keep between herself and those who had taught her so long ago. She was not sure Rath even knew the full extent of the Princess' secrets. Or JaKal either, for that matter. The only thing she had ever said about it was that she had taken a sacred oath of secrecy.

Rath, trying to sound as casual as he could, "And how do you think that translates?"

"I'm not sure, but it sounded like a whole different ritual was performed on her body." he said, scratching his chin. "But I cannot for the life of me figure out what it could possibly be. That is why I need to find her body. So I can run tests on it and find out her many, or at least a few of her secrets."

Sohkarra couldn't help but shudder when she heard this. For the last thing she needed was to be the guest of honor at one of Cameron's autopsy parties for the ancients. Marianne put a hand on her arm. Sohkarra gave her a little smile. It was clear to Marianne that she was most uncomfortable indeed. For she had once thought as Cameron had, as far as testing the mummies. That the only way to find out the real deal was to cut them open see the real meat of the matter, so to speak.

"Perhaps it was the fanciful writing of some scribe trying to get his name in the history books," suggested Nefertina. She knew this comment would get a rise out of Rath. And she hoped a little humor would take the look off Sohkarra's face.

"Some secrets are not meant to be revealed." Sohkarra said quietly. "For to do so could unleash something that you are nowhere near prepared to deal with. Remember what happened to Napoleon when he went into the sphinx at Giza."

"What do you mean by that Jaime?" asked Cameron. He never would have expected that statement from her. And what else might she know? After all, she had brought herself to his attention before with her information about Mennehotep and Kara.

"You know the story of when Napoleon went into the great pyramid?" she asked. At Cameron's nod that he did, she continued. "He had been in there but a short while when he came out more frightened than he had ever been. And he never spoke of what he encountered, even on his deathbed. And the secret went with him to the grave."

"What is your point?" Cameron pointedly.

"My point, as you call it," Sohkarra countered, "is that he did not know that of which he was dealing with, and came out of his experience much worse for the wear."

The two were glaring at each other as Rath quickly entered the fray.

"The proper spells must be in place for the spirit to read them..." Rath quickly spoke up to remind him, to get his mind off his latest line of conversation. "So you run a serious risk exhuming them from their tombs. I take great pains in painting the spells..."

"In the museum displays!" Marianne rapidly added.

"Quite so," Cameron nodded, impressed by Rath's grasp of the spiritual nature of ancient Egyptian religion. If only he knew the whole of it!

"That reminds me... I'll just be a minute. There's something I must fetch..."

And Sohkarra needed to get back to JaKal, Presley and Armon. "I really must go," she said getting up excusing herself. "I promised to meet Jack at the domicile."

And after saying her good-byes to everyone, asked Rath and Nefertina to join her.

"He has not yet disclosed the secret, which he most bursting to reveal. And I have a bad feeling that someone left something behind, never dreaming that an ambitious young man would find it. So now we need to get that back as well as find the sarcophagi. For I fear what that papyrus may say." She said to Rath. "I need one of you to stay with him and try to get the information from him." And seeing the look in Nefertina's eyes, "And Nef, I think you're nominated."

"Yes my Princess." She answered. "I'll stay with him. With pleasure." And she moved over to go with Cameron. "Mind if I tag along?" Nefertina asked, as he trotted downstairs. The charioteer shot Rath a warning glance as she dashed after Cameron.

"My Princess, do you think that's wise?" Rath asked Sohkarra. "After all, look at how she is staring holes right through him."

"Rath, that is my point. I think she has the best chance. You see how taken he is with her?"

Sohkarra answered, directing Rath's attention to the looks going on with the new acquaintances.

"I get your point." He agreed.

"But I want you to stay also. For if Nefertina doesn't find out, Marianne must talk to him for us."

Sohkarra said. "And I know you won't mind staying with her." And at Rath's quick glance at her, she merely smiled.

"Your mind is most crafty and calculating Princess." He whispered to her.

She smiled up at him with a twinkle in her eye. "Yes, I know."

******************************************************************

"How are you coming with that scrying spell?" Rath asked her, voice lowered.

"It's... difficult..." said she. Rath's hands flew across a piece of notebook paper as he put Heratic upon its lined surface. When Marianne realized her error, she wanted to sink away in embarrassment.

"I should have remembered that was a biconsenental sign..." sighed she. "It takes years to master," said he. "Do not worry. Simply recopy the spell this way... and it is easier to recite and commit to memory..."

"Is it any less effective in English than in Msirian?"

"Mm. Not really. But the true gist of the spell is more easily gained when you learn it in it's original form. Here... now if you use the messeh form instead of the..." His slim fingers slipped over hers, guiding the pencil as it dug into paper. Nervous shivers of excitement tingled her hands at his touch. For she was learning ancient language that no one else would know. Rath continued to show the correct Hieratic script to Marianne as Cameron chatted about his latest expedition with Nefertina. They had just come up from his basement study. So absorbed into each other's respective partners were the others that their world seemed ages apart.

"And so we were in this particular temple... and there were quite a few inscriptions... Oh, you might be rather interested in this, Sis..."

Marianne and Rath looked up. At the sight of Nefertina, Rath jerked his hands away from guiding Marianne's. She in turn set down her pencil. Cameron sat down on one side of her, and opened up his attache' case. Upon the coffee table he spread it. He opened his sketchpad, absently covering up the lined notebook paper that she'd been writing her own Hieroglyphs upon. At the sound of the word, inscription,' Rath's attention was snared. Nefertina watched amused as Rath glanced over the two sibling's shoulders.

"I've got rather the first part... but there are a few sketchy details..." He pulled out the translation his team had pieced together. "It appears to be a description of teaching styles, relating to vision. But it is rather cumbersome..." Cameron read aloud, oblivious to Rath and Nefertina's confused stares: Hidden things beyond sight, be exposed to the light of day and wisdom thus derived. For I know how to see those things seen by the gods which were once unseen by man, revealed in the daylight of Ra...."

"I would say they didn't with that horrendous pronunciation," Rath muttered.

"That phraseology is completely inaccurate... and that one botch up with that particular set of characters is completely wrong..."

Cameron stopped his explanation. Blue grey eyes stared at Rath with a mix of indigence and puzzlement. Nefertina shook her head, thinking, "here we go..."

Rath glanced over the etchings that Cameron had made of the inscriptions, "Well it's obvious that it isn't a set of teaching styles. Rather it's a spell for comprehension of ancient truths!"

"May I ask what your basis is, sir?" asked Cameron. "Just because you can paint pretty pictures that look just like the ancients... honestly any chap who sits on a street corner knocking off cheap imitations for tourists can reproduce the form, but not the language."

Rath was about to launch into a tirade when a sharp elbow from Marianne shut him up. "Rath's the independent expert on Egyptology..." said Marianne hastily.

"He's a consultant I brought in on the Sohkarra exhibit..."

"Ah. And so you think this translation is a botch up'?" Cameron said. "And what would you propose is the proper one?"

"It's a common mistake," Rath sniffed, shaking the lined legal pad from beneath Cameron's. He took pencil in hand, and sketched both symbols in the script. "For instance, this set of signs represents one sound. And you have the incorrect sound represented. This series denotes..."

Rath's hands flew over the paper as he marked in Heiratic, under the Hieroglyphic signs he'd drawn. In his tenor voice He read and translated: That which is hidden be revealed, oh master of knowing... for I know thy name. There is no barrier for those enlightened of Thoth, be he all wise imparting wisdom. May the secret paths be revealed through the sight of Osiris, he whose eyes were set straight by Ptah..."

A look of amazement spread over Cameron's face. "You really do know your Hieroglyphics," he muttered. "But research has shown that set of markings is related to vision, not knowledge..."

"It's all there, for vision of the gods is synonymous with knowing hidden truths! Once the name of the unknown is revealed, the power is gained by the knower of the name." Rath said, finger on the markings. "Quite simple when you know how..."

"Excuse me, while I go check the supper," Marianne said, heading over to the kitchen. They'd chosen to have the tea in her flat, one floor above Cameron's. He occupied the lower floor, where his bedroom and study were. In the basement adjoining the garage Marianne had a small laboratory of her own. Above was the living room with its full kitchen separated off and a bathroom. Often Cameron and Marianne would eat together in this larger area. Then up the stairs was Marianne's bedroom and a library area which served as a guestroom.

Cameron argued vehemently with Rath for the next few minutes over the translations. Yet clearly both enjoyed the intellectual debates.

Meanwhile Nefertina joined Marianne in the kitchen.. "Say, doesn't he know about us?" she whispered to her friend.

"I could not risk telling him, for I promised JaKal," she sighed. "But he is my brother..."

"Maybe he might understand about us," Nefertina said. "It might be okay to tell him... even if JaKal would burst a bandage...That's what we have Sohkarra for; to sooth the savage beast. She can usually talk him into our way of thinking."

"That's not all of it. He's been trying to track down the missing Sohkarra body and the other artifacts for months with the help of the authorities. If I told him... there's no telling what he'd say or do." And as a second thought. "You said the others found somewhere to lay low for a while?"

"We only gotta hide out for the next week or so...Or at least that is what JaKal is hoping for."

Nefertina started. "He, the Princess, and Armon are staying at Presley's house."

Marianne seemed surprised at this. "Under his mother's nose? How did they manage that?"

"It worked out well. His mother is going out of town to a museum curator's conference." She answered. "And Presley told her he knew of someone he really liked who would be more than willing to stay with him. We told you, remember?"

"Yes, I do. That seems to have worked out perfectly." Marianne commented. "What about Armon?"

Nefertina couldn't help but laugh. "You'll never guess, but he's working part time at one of the Beefy Burgers.

"Well, Rath did ask me if you could hide here... but that will be a challenge if we have to do it for very long. For I know you both need your sarcophagi... and how on Earth am I going to hide those?"

"Uh... in the closet?" Nefertina asked.

"I can hide yours in the back of my storage closet upstairs. For he never goes inside my bedroom. But Rath's..."

"That lab you have?"

"Cameron would insist on sharing a room with him... or else putting Rath in his spare bedroom."

"This is gonna be tricky," Nefertina sighed. "But first thing's first; we've got to find the sarcophagi."

"I hope I can somehow convince him to 'spill it' as young Presley would say. And also find that piece of papyrus that Sohkarra seemed so concerned about. What could possibly be on it that would have her so concerned?"

"Leave that to me," Nefertina grinned. "And I have a feeling the papyrus has something to do with her mummification or whatever they did to her by the way she reacted."

Marianne couldn't resist asking, "What is her secret to her looking as human as I or anyone else?" She had always wanted to know, but had never come right out and asked Sohkarra. She had a feeling she would not tell at any rate.

"You know as much about it as I do," Nefertina answered. "All I know is that she had some very mysterious tutors besides Rath in the past, but she never speaks of them. And there are some things you just don't ask her ladyship about. "And that comment pretty well squelched the conversation as the two ladies left and rejoined their companions.

Rath and Cameron were sitting like old colleagues by now, as they pored over the hieroglyphics. Marianne was relieved to see that Rath and her brother were at least making efforts to get along.

"I say, this is good fun," Cameron smiled. "To speak with someone who knows quite a bit about the subject... we don't find many non-Egyptologists who..."

"Just goes to show ya don't know everything about Egypt!" laughed Nefertina, quickly diffusing again what may have been an incendiary situation. She sat between Rath and Cameron, grinning at the blonde fellow with all her charm.

"Hmm. You say you like motorcycles," said Cameron all of a sudden to Nefertina.

"What say I take you for a spin on my Harley..."

"Hey, that'd be boss"! Nefertina laughed.

"You guys had better behave," she teased Rath. If looks could kill, Nefertina would be dead a second time over as he glared at her.

"It's a lovely night, you two. Why don't you join us?" Cameron asked.

"Er, Rath wanted to explain some more of the hieroglyphs to me..." she said.

"I... was interested to know what else you..."

"Messed up," he laughed good naturedly at Rath. The scribe smiled, a bit relieved that his initial outburst had been taken so graciously by Marianne's sibling. Gently he held her, arm around her shoulders as she rested her head on his chest. He cared not for the warning looks of Nefertina. For she seemed full of the sight of the blonde fellow Cameron. Excitedly she tripped off after the Egyptologist, like a young child who is going to the circus for the first time.

Rath and Marianne noted this enthusiasm with some alarm. Would Nefertina be able to remember her duty, besotted as she seemed with Cameron. However, Marianne trusted Sohkarra's judgement on this matter.

Rath however had his own doubts, knowing how Nefertina had lived so long as a man in Egypt. The chance to live as a woman doing those things which put her in equal standing with men was irresistible. And that included pursuit of a romantic interest.

"We'll be back in half an hour," Cameron said. "Then perhaps we could all... take in a movie after dinner?"

**********************************************************************

Nefertina clung to the back of the motorcycle, wind in her hair as Cameron drove along highway. Far below the sea lapped and frothed at the base of the high cliff upon which they rode. The black asphalt ribbon snaked for miles.

Nefertina's mind was a million miles away from her duty as she felt the warmth of Cameron's body against hers. He seemed so exciting! And he loved motorcycles and speed just as she did. She wore his borrowed helmet, but her long black hair streamed out the back as she daydreamed. Fast cars, fancy clothing, being a woman was much more exciting in this time than in ancient Egypt.

Egypt. Cameron rode up and down the Nile on his Harley Davidson. From Memphis to Thebes. What a way to go. Someday they would have to take that trip together.

Yet in her mind she flinched, when she realized what he did. Unearthing mummies in tombs! Desecration! She shivered when she remembered. Then tensed up.

Cameron noticed her tenseness. "What's wrong love?"

"Oh, nothing…" she said, pushing aside the thoughts. "Just… letting it all soak in…"

"Then let this soak in!" he laughed, gunning the throttle. With the sudden burst of speed, Nefertina gasped for breath as she clung more tightly to him.

"Hang on!" he cried. Suddenly lost in the power of the engine, Nefertina threw all caution to the wind. The roar of the engine drowned out any fear for now.

Ever faster the wind whipped through their hair as she laughed. Bastet be praised this was exceptional! Far more powerful than the Jetbike!

"Some piece of work!" Nefertina cried. "How fast does she go?"

"How fast do you want it to go, luv?" he asked her.

"Fast enough to get us away from San Francisco!" she cried. And felt his smile through her hands as she clung ever more tightly. How she needed this!

*************************************************************

Marianne felt warm affection for her brother, really. Yet part of her was glad when Nefertina and he left to ride motorcycles. "What else will you teach me, great Scribe?" she giggled, her soft British accent music to his ears.

"Mm. It depends upon whether or not you master the art of Hieroglyphic writing, young lady," said he, in his own natural ancient speech, which sounded so exotic when blended with his recently acquired British accent. Marianne loved the sound of the two together.

"With your expert help how could I not," said she softly, as she realized she understood what he had said. "You who have seen the passing of many centuries..."

"Your soft words can work wonders to the ego of a humbled one..." he said, teasing her slightly.

"With such encouragement I should wonder why I have not painted the entire Book of Dreams upon the walls of your sleep chamber."

"Don't you dare," she warned him. "My brother already thinks I've gone potty with the little bit of graffiti you scrawled in here..."

"Graffiti?" he pretended to fume. AI will have you know when I painted the likeness of Amenhotep himself in his tomb..."

"And I suppose next you're going to claim you chiseled those names in Thebes...in the temple of Karnack..."

"That was... someone else," said he. "There were quite a few scribes that came and went over the reigns of the Great Ones. I am but one of many who had the privilege of serving Pharaoh."

"Here we are... alone at last and all you can think to do is trade verbal pot shots with me," she mock pouted. In response, he leaned over and seized her legs. Firmly he swung them onto his lap, pulling her to sit there. Marianne felt her breath quickening as her face was only inches from his.

"Such a fine face should not bear the lines of an unpleasant expression," said the Scribe, raising delicate long fingers to touch her face. As if it were a marble statue his fingertips caressed her cheeks. Those shivers shot up her spine as she relaxed upon his lap. Granted the couch might prove more comfortable, but this was far more entertaining of a seat. His green eyes softened into her blue ones, and he felt the live breath of her on his cheek.

Softly he pressed lips to hers. Enjoying the sweetness of a stolen moment alone with the woman he'd come to love. Her arms slipped around his neck, pulling him closer as he folded her into the curve of one arm. That pungent taste of incense numbed her lips and engulfed her senses. A faint taste of Listerine mouthwash was discernible upon his dry tongue as it slid against hers. Sohkarra's spell gave him the blush of life, and he intended to make full use of it, now that Nefertina was conveniently occupied.

Marianne reached up and pulled off his hat. A long braid of raven black hair fell around his shoulders. Black as Marianne's hair! She could not resist running hands through the sleek black cascade as he buried his fingers in hers.

Both of them broke apart the kiss when they heard the noise at the front door.

"For the love of Horus," he grumbled, gripping her close to him protectively.

Still he held her firmly upon his lap, determined to savor each moment of contact with her he could squeeze from this otherwise disturbing situation that had prompted him to seek refuge here. That sudden jolt of fear pounded her heart rapidly. "Whatever is this untold interruption?"

Their nerves had all been on edge since this affair began. Marianne saw a look of concern replace the look of irritation. "It couldn't be Shabti," Rath mused. "The spells of protection I painted upon your chamber's walls should conceal this house..."

Marianne and Rath tensed, holding each other firmly. Then they head the noise of

a key being inserted into the lock of the front door. "Oh, bother, it's only Cameron," she grumbled in frustration, hearing his familiar voice echoing through the front door. Marianne climbed off his lap and sat about six inches from him. Rath in turn coiled his braid up again, shoving it beneath his hat once more. Like a pair of statues they sat with their hands to themselves, looking much like the twin figures of Royal couples that were present in many an Egyptian temple.

She grabbed the remote for the TV, snapping it on seconds before Nefertina walked in first. Rath glanced at the spirit box, twiddling his thumbs in a vain attempt to mimic the paragon of innocence.

Both of them strangely resembled the twin statues of a Pharaoh and his Great Wife that would bracket the way to the Palace at Thebes.

Cameron soon followed, glancing quizzically at his sister. Somehow he knew from the blush on her face that he'd interrupted an intimate moment. However, he didn't let on to Nefertina. "Hiya kids," Nefertina quipped. "Did you behave yourselves?"

"I might ask you the same question," Rath said simply, his hands folded tightly upon his lap.

"Running off with Marianne's brother on a frivolous exercise!" "Don't go there," she joked.

Cameron and Marianne hid their grins as they watched the verbal exchange. Rath and Nefertina argued like they did, as if they were a brother and sister.

"Let's take in a movie, shall we?" Cameron said, breaking the tension. "I know a great film that recently came out. I've been rather wanting to see it…"

*********************************************************************

At the cineplex they crammed into the luxurious seats, four in a row. To Nefertina and Rath's embarassment it was that chiller thriller called the Mummy. They had already seen it. For the last hour Marianne and Nefertina suffered as Rath and Cameron exchanged words about the various historical inaccuracies:

"That is not correct!" Rath spat as he heard the explanation of brain removal. "And the very idea of mummifying people alive! That's preposterous.."

"That English chap is sure a twit," Cameron muttered as he saw the dorky brother of the leading lady.

"What a Hunk," Nefertina sighed deeply as she looked at the rugged features of the leading man. She gulped down more popcorn when she felt herself blushing.

Later on they came to the scenes of Humanoptera. Rath and Nefertina winced visibly as they saw the mummies being destroyed left and right. "Hey!" Nefertina said. "Mummies have rights too!"

"What in blazes," Cameron said as Nefertina looked furious.

Rath winced again at the sight of the bastardized language. "Book of the Dead indeed!" he harumphed, folding his arms over his chest. "The nerve!"

Nefertina laughed as the weasily bad guy got his due. She cried when the Pharaoh's guard killed the mummy Anaxitamun. "That's so sad," she sighed. "All Imhotep wanted was to be united with his true love."

"Hmm, poor bugger," Cameron sighed. Then all of them gasped as the city exploded on the wide screen in full cinematic glory. Rath was agape at the horrendous butchering of Egyptian civilization. Cameron was fair near laughing his head off.

"What a preposterous load of tripe!" he laughed. Rath began to chuckle as well.

"My good man, I completely agree with you!"

Cameron slapped him on the shoulder. "Good show, Rutherford old man! Let's go get a pint!"

"That's the first time they've agreed on anything," Marianne said with an amused face as they dodged the rows of popcorn and discarded soda cups. They wended their way out of the theater.

***********************************************************************

JaKal, Sohkarra, and Presley stopped by the local Beefy Burger for dinner. The usual crowd shuffled in, the mothers with their children crying and laughing about what special meal to order. Presley rolled his eyes again at one screaming kid while his mother purchaised some fries. He glanced up at a frustrated JaKal.

"In my day a child would get a sound stern switching for such behavior," JaKal grumbled, hands over his ears.

"Uh, like get into the 20th century," Presley whispered to him. "Nowadays they'd lock ya up for child abuse if ya did that!"

"Hmm," JaKal muttered. "And this screaming isn't abuse to someone's ears?"

Sohkarra chuckled, from behind both of the two main men in her life. "I'll get us a table…" she said, as Presley offered to buy them their food. JaKal sighed with relief, helping Sohkarra to scope out a table.

"What will you have, sir?" asked the server. Presley jumped when he realized who it was!

"Hey, Armon!" he laughed. "You sure fooled me, man!"

"Prince… I mean Presley! Nice t' see ya! You won't believe this job! I get all my meals free!"

"Armon, I am glad to see that, but we must procure food…"

Before long Armon had rung up their food, resisting the temptation to devour each burger that he set on the tray. It was sheer torture for him not to eat the merchandise. Sohkarra giggled as Presley and JaKal brought back the tray.

Armon's supervisor, a sturdy women with reddish hair laughed as she saw the look on his face.

"Well, you're doing better than this morning," she laughed, patting him on the shoulder. "You're great with the customers, but good thing we stopped you eating the burgers!"

"Sorry Ms. Huston," he apologized. "But they are soo good…"

"That's Mel to you," she grinned. "Keep up the good work…. Say, those people you just waited on? They friends of yours?"

"They are my comrades in arms," he said before realizing what he'd said. "Oops…"

"Why don't ya take five and join them. After that, there are some crates from the back I need brought out," she smiled.

"You are most wise and fair, milady Mel…" he said, with a bow of great respect. Amused, the supervisor let him go.

Already JaKal and Presley munched their meals. Sohkarra fixed Armon in an amused gaze as he sat down to join them. "Found a friend, didn't you Armon?" she teased.

"Miss Melissa is my supervisor," he said matter of factly.

"I don't know," Presley grinned. "I think she kinda digs ya!"

"She is my master, and I am privileged to serve her," he insisted. "That is… all…"

"You like her, admit it!" Sohkarra laughed. Armon fumbled with his hands.

Just then they heard the television. All three snapped to attention as they heard the news. "More sightings of the mysterious bandaged figures have been reported…"

"Hey that's…" JaKal gasped.

"That news program's been on all day," Armon said.

"Has it?" Sohkarra asked, sharing a look of alarm with JaKal.

All four listened grimly to the news. Indeed more sightings had been confirmed. Even though the local newspeople were cracking jokes, it was no laughing matter to the four friends. JaKal's blue eyes narrowed as the commentator came to the part about the local police on the trail of some "museum workers" who had mysteriously knocked them out. A worried policeman gabbled nervously about what he thought he'd seen.

"I swear it wasn't me!" Sohkarra said as Presley glared at her. "Rath was the one that goofed this time…"

"Those guys aren't the ones that stopped us," said Armon. "Those… are people I haven't seen before."

"What?" everyone said.

"Yeah. I remember the faces of everyone on the magic box," Armon said. "And that man… he calls himself Joe. And he was not in the guards that captured us…"

"That must mean either he's seen something more recently or…" Presley said.

Sohkarra paled, and let out a small noise. "What… what's wrong?" JaKal asked, as he moved to grab her shoulder.

"I just had a premonition!" she exclaimed. "Our friends are in danger…"

"What?" Presley asked.

"I sensed Scarab's hand in this…" said Sohkarra, shivering. "Who else would make sure that people see what they aren't supposed to see?"

"What do you mean?" Armon asked.

"You think Scarab is creating rumors or something?" Presley asked.

"Like the hungry lion sending out his females to distract the herd… and make them scatter before he makes his kill?" JaKal said. As usual, everyone gave him confused stares.

"I just saw in my precog ability, what might happen!" Sohkarra clarified, sapphire eyes clouded with fear. "I saw reporters and strange figures rushing out over the city… and they had no minds to touch…"

"No minds…" JaKal said. "Scarab's Shabti? Did you sense them?"

"Yes… Rath and Nefertina… may be in danger!"

***************************************************************

Moonlight danced off the lapping tide as it washed upon the moon washed sand. They had parked the Harley Davidson and the Jetcycle off to one side, near a picnic table. Cam pulled Nefertina to sit beside him. She lay her head on his shoulder as he gently caressed her back. It seemed so nice to have hm there next to her. Just enjoying his presence. Dare she try anything more? Rath also had his arm around Marianne. Both he and the charioteer drew in their respective sighs of contentment as they were seated upon thick wool blankets. They'd tried out their respective proximity at the movies earlier that evening.

Now both sets of couples lay on blankets on the beach, Nefertina's favorite spot. She insisted that Rath and Marianne tag along. Indeed they did enjoy the view of the stars above. Nefertina giggled to herself when she saw Cameron pull out the two blankets from his Harley's back cargo compartment. It was one of those heavier duty cruising bikes with the many special compartments. And true to his bachelor nature he always came prepared for romantic encounters.

Arms folded behind his head, Cameron drew Nefertina to rest her head on his chest. Her long dark hair spread over like a comet's tail as she snuggled closer. Memories hung thick in her mind of the men she'd brought here before. A tear slipped down her cheek. "Whatever is the matter?" Cameron asked her.

"This place. I come here to think. And there are so many memories..."

"Hush now. Don't think of the ghosts of the past..."

"But..."

"I'm not thinking about them," he said, drawing her into his arms. Gently he rolled over to face her.

Rath pointed out the various Egyptian names for the stars. "Just think,"

Marianne said, her own head pillowed on his chest. "Those stars... that you saw in your own time... are the same ones that I saw each night..."

"Be sure to make a wish," he said softly to her.

"I already know something very good to wish for," said she, rolling over to face him. He did the same, arm draped over her. Glancing over him, Marianne suppressed a giggle. "You've been careful each item my brother has been in the room. I'd swear you were concerned about protecting my honor..."

"That is it yes... and Nefertina was to ensure that..."

"I would not worry, my dear. For it seems they are otherwise occupied."

"Ah," Rath smiled, glancing over his shoulder. For Nefertina's back was to them both, and Cameron was caressing her skin in the moonlight. Nefertina could not resist as his hand caressed her cheek. Slowly she felt her sadness evaporate.

"Someone as lovely as you, dear girl, should not cry over past ghosts..."

"Thank you," Nefertina sighed. Her eyes closed as Cameron leaned forwards. The gentle press of his lips to hers was wonderful. She never thought it would feel so sweet even though it was brief.

Nefertina sighed again as he kissed her once more, this time a bit more firmly. She imagined herself in a movie. Both her hands found convenient places, and her mouth rested against his as they lay close together. His warmth and the smell of wool engulfed her, becoming the night itself.

Rath similarly drew Marianne close to him, his slender arms enclosing her protectively. He lay half on his back, pulling her to lay almost atop him for comfort's sake. His rolled up raincoat pillowed his neck, his hat lay to one side. In the dark his mouth found the curve of hers, eagerly meeting beneath the stars. As his kiss lay thick on her lips she drank in the shivers of delight his fingers presented to her back. Cameron rolled over, pressing Nefertina beneath him gently. At first he withdrew from his long kiss.

"Are... you quite comfortable with this? I mean... it is rather sudden and all..."

"Do you have to ask," she giggled, pulling him down as she renewed the kiss.

Cameron's weight was alleviated partly as he rested on one knee over her. It felt so safe and warm to be covered by this human blanket.

Marianne, less inhibited by her brother's distraction, increased the intensity of her kiss. Rath responded much the same, increasing the intensity of his own kiss as they lay there. Blood pounded in her ear as she felt his tongue slip against hers. It seemed to slip over and around, as a shudder of delight claimed her. She pulled away momentarily, licking her lips as she tried to catch her breath. Blood flushed her face, and she buried her face in his shirt. Gently he soothed her, running his hand over her back... "I did not realize... I had caused you discomfort," he finally blurted out.

"No... It wasn't that," she gasped, fingers worked into his raven black hair. "You never... had done that before... and I was caught by surprise..."

"Then... you enjoyed it, I trust?"

"Shh... Don't spoil it by asking so," she warned, cutting him off with another kiss. He relaxed and proceeded as before. He was determined to prove Chontra wrong. Slowly his kiss intensified, as he increased the pressure of his mouth upon hers. He'd seen Sohkarra as she kissed JaKal, a bit annoyed that his warnings of guardians not crossing invisible lines..and her undignified conduct. But he had since come to understand what drove his Princess and her guardian, who was also his best friend, for he felt the same drive himself now. Gently his fingers pressed a place in her back he knew would induce comfort. Another light touch would produce a tingling sensation, at the base of her neck. Through the kisses their sighs of enjoyment came. It was as if he tried to atone for years without such close physical contact. The intensity made Marianne's head spin, as giddy as a swig of fine Chablis wine.

Nefertina opened her eyes momentarily in her latest kiss with Cameron. Something had sounded odd to her. Suddenly she felt very vulnerable and worried. Sighing, she pulled away from Cameron. "What's the matter?" he asked, hand on her shoulder. "Is it something I did wrong?"

"No, you did everything right," she said, hugging herself as she sat up. Cameron positioned himself behind her, hugging her and cuddling against her as she shivered. "What?" he whispered softly into her ear.

"I had the strangest feeling we were being watched."

Rath too felt the same thing. His grip on Marianne tightened so much they parted from their kiss. "Rath... what?" she muttered dreamily, still laying atop him.

"Ssh," he said, sitting bold upright. His hand clutched hers, and she squeezed it tightly, sensing his sudden change in mood. She was sitting on his lap as Nefertina was sitting on Cameron's knee. Nefertina and Rath glanced at each other, a look of fear in their eyes.

Cameron and Marianne were puzzled. What could possibly...

"We've been out in the open too long," Rath muttered, climbing to his feet. Taking the blanket he shook off the sand as he proceeded to fold it neatly. "We had best return to your domicile..."

"All right," Cameron sighed, as he got up from the blanket. Nefertina automatically folded the blanket she and Cam had been on. "What is going on here?"

And all at once, two figures in strange animal armor showed. Up. Hawk and Horse.

"You must hurry and come with us!" spoke the tall figure in the blue and gold Hawk armor.

"I'm not going anywhere," Cameron spoke up, pushing Nefertina behind him in a protective manner. Nefertina came out from behind him, trying to explain. "It's all right. They're friends. And if they say we must go with them, then trust them."

Marianne spoke up also. "She's right Cam." And at his surprised look, she said simply, "I know them. We can trust them."

"Who are you?" Cameron demanded of the newcomers.

"Friends." Answered the smaller figure in the horse armor. Cameron looked closer at the figure and noticed it was female. And the voice sounded strangely familiar. But he couldn't quite place it.

"They were those whom rescued your sister from her would-be captors." Rath suddenly explained. "It is logical to assume from that they mean us no harm."

"Is this true?" Cameron asked the new arrivals. "Did you rescue my sister?"

"Yes.." the imposing figure in Hawk armor said. "But there is no time to explain now"

Just then bright floodlights shone upon the two couples as they threw their hands before their faces. A dozen or so Shabti came into view, some dressed as reporters. This time there didn't seem to be any humans among them.

Cameron pushed Nefertina behind them. "Get away from here." He whispered to her.

Nefertina and Rath exchanged worried glances. They didn't dare use their powers in full view of Cameron. They would have to depend on Sohkarra and JaKal to handle the majority of it.

Yet before they could react, he reached under his shirt, which Nefertina had partly unbuttoned already. To their mutual surprise, he pulled out his Eye of Horus amulet, brandishing it aloft.

"Wherever did he get that?" Rath gasped as he gripped Marianne's arm.

"He believes in the ancient mystics." Marianne answered him.

"A sensible man," Rath muttered in new appreciation for Cameron. "Get back in the name of Horus!" Cameron shouted in passable Egyptian. Nefertina winced at the butchered language.

"Come on!" Nefertina shouted, using the momentary delay to drag to the Harley Davidson. She got on, forcing him to climb on after her. They roared off.

Following their example, Rath and Marianne raced to the Jetcycle. She gripped his chest from behind as they roared away after Nefertina and Cameron. Rath gave one last glance back at JaKal and Sohkarra to ensure himself that they were going to be able to handle the situation. What he saw relieved his anxiety at leaving his Princess and friend. Behind them JaKal fired a spread of flaming arrows to create a wall of flame.

Sohkarra sent out a powerful mental push, shielding Rath and Nefertina's bikes as they retreated.

"Where are we going?" Cameron shouted to Nefertina.

"Somewhere away from this mess!" she shouted back.

Deciding against using his armored form, Rath shouted a spell in ancient Egyptian. When Cameron wasn't looking, he hurled a sphere of green energy at a Shabti to their left. It smashed into multiple fragments. Marianne transmuted another that grabbed onto the bike. It changed into glass, shattering. Nefertina artfully dodged the Shabti laser fire. Hanging on for dear life, Cameron couldn't help but be amazed at her skill. Reaching out for her whip, she snapped it in the faces of several Shabti. Cameron gasped in surprise at the appearance of this weapon. "I didn't know you could use a whip," he said to her over the noise of the Harley.

"There's lots about me you don't know." She laughed.

"Mmmm, I cannot wait to find that out!" Cameron smiled behind her.

"Now, how did you know about the Eye of Horus?" she asked him.

"I'm an Egyptologist, remember?" he said to her. "How would I not know of the ancient mysteries?"

Rath followed close behind Cameron. Marianne reached out with her own power, for her brother's eyes were on the road. She transmuted a nearby Shabti to hydrogen, and then the bike's exhaust set it aflame.

Other Shabti exploded as Rath's magic hit them. "That's quite enough!" she warned him. "You need to conserve your strength."

"You question my judgement?" He began, then snapped his mouth shut. "Er..quite right."

"What the deuce!" Cameron shouted. "Those are exactly like the figures in the museum that attacked us!"

"They're the same!" came the woman's voice. "And they are only the beginning! For they know you are interested in the truth, Cameron Ellis! And their evil master would have you take the blame for his own evil actions!"

"You!. I know your voice!" he cried. "You sound just like the woman in the museum who was captured. And plus you came with Nefertina to our home! Why are you wearing that strange outfit?"

She didn't answer, for it hadn't occurred to her that he might recognize her voice, but rather concentrated on the business at hand. She didn't want him to find out about them yet. But rather issued the order for her two guardians to get their passengers away. Between JaKal's fire arrows and Sohkarra's spells, the two cycles roared to safety.

Sohkarra created a blinding flash to cover their escape. JaKal circled back to pick up his Princess, who'd momentarily fell behind. She hadn't fully mastered the self levitation thing yet. "Are you ready my Princess?"

"You bet I am JaKal!" she answered. In a shimmering streak of gold, he shot overhead with Sohkarra in his arms holding on for dear life. "That was a bit too close for my liking." She said to her guardian.

"We may have yet another problem," he said to her.

"So it would seem." She answered him. "We need to get back to Presley's home."

********************************************************************

Exhausted, they dragged themselves into the apartment. Rath sighed as he thought of how nice it would be to lie down in his sarcophagus again. But somehow he and Nefertina had to explain to the twins that they were needing sleep.

"Ah, I'm dead on my feet." Cameron sighed. "I don't know what brought those ancient terrors.

And I am assuming that you two knew all along they were after us." He said facing Rath.

"Quite right. And that is why we are here. To hide from them, and to protect you and Marianne from harm.."

"Whatever is this about? And who were those armored ones who helped us. The woman I have met before. I recognized her voice."

"Cam, listen to him," Nefertina begged him. She was trying to take him thoughts off the fact that he thought he recognized Sohkarra's voice.

"Remember the museum?" Marianne said. "When I was attacked? These Shabti are the same?"

"Does this have to do with your disappearance?" Cam asked her.

"I wanted to tell you. And I never thought it would ever come to this."

"Cam, it's late. And we're safe now, thanks to our friends who covered our backs." Nefertina said. "What you really need to know is that the ancient magic is very, very real."

"And it's coming back with a vengeance." Rath said. "We need to rest, and all will be revealed in the morning."

"Very well." Cameron sighed. "The guestroom is at your disposal Rutherford."

"And Tina will be just upstairs." Said Marianne.

Cameron turned to Nefertina, yawning. "Excuse me. I do hope you had a good time."

"Yes," she said. Cameron moved, and they went into each other's arms. He kissed her gently upon the forehead. Nefertina, however, grabbed his jacket collar and kissed him firmly on the mouth.

As Nefertina was distracted, Rath gently kissed Marianne good night. "Do not fear," he said. "I will be just downstairs."

"Do you suppose they made it back to Presley's all right?" asked Marianne, suddenly remembering JaKal and Sohkarra. They had covered their backs as they had made good their escape.

"I'm sure they did." Rath told her. For he felt that at least for now, all was well with them. "They have learned to work well as a team." He was pleased to note that fact.

"Indeed they have." She agreed. And then over a yawn, "Good night." She bade him. Nefertina followed her up the stairs as Rath wandered down to Cam's apartment.

**********************************************************************

All too soon the blush of life spell was fading. They both climbed into their guestroom beds. It had been a long night. And they could only wish they had their sarcophagi so they could recharge.

Rath sighed deeply as he remembered how many times he had thought of how nice it would be to sleep in a normal bed, such as his Princess was able to do. Yet now that he had the chance, he couldn't enjoy it, for he was badly in need of his sarcophagi, as was Nefertina. Luckily for all of them, Sohkarra didn't need one, and could keep them going for the time being at least with her rejuvenation magic. But they had to locate their missing items. And not too far away, Nefertina too lay awake, wondering what would become of them if they didn't find their sarcophagi.

******************************************************************

Meanwhile, back at the house of Presley, Sohkarra, JaKal and Armon, who'd just gotten off his shift at Beefy Burger, arrived back. The old plan of sneaking in through a window that had been previously agreed upon with Presley to leave open had been abandoned with the thought that it could possibly attract attention if someone chanced to see them. And with Armon's great size, it was not out of the realm of possibility.

Armon, who'd been working had no idea of what had just transpired past what he had heard on the magic box. And Presley was waiting for them. "What have you guys been doing?" he demanded. "You're all over the news." They looked at each other. This was getting worse and worse by the day. And not one knew how to stop what was happening.

"Rath and Nefertina and their companions were attacked down by the beach by Shabti." JaKal explained. "We had no choice but to go to their aid, for they could not openly use their powers in the presence of Marianne's brother."

"He says he recognized me," Sohkarra said. "That's not good."

"He thinks he recognized your voice Princess," stated JaKal. "But he couldn't see your face, so he cannot be sure."

"No, but if he even suspects, that could be bad news," Sohkarra speculated. "He is quite smart for a modern male. I'll have Marianne check to see how much he thinks he knows. For she will have to convince him that it was not I. But if he asks, brother, please say we were with you all evening. But one thing is certain; he knows things are definitely not normal now. But I do have a cure for what will ail that little problem."

"What would that be Princess?" asked Armon.

"A simple spell of forgetting." answered Sohkarra.

JaKal and Armon nodded in agreement.

"Rath and Nefertina will have to see me soon, for their spell will be wearing off." Sohkarra remembered. "Just as yours will be."

"I will talk with them then. And JaKal, I think you should be there as well."

"Very well Princess." He answered, going over to her.

Armon had gone ahead of them to the attic where they had been able to use two twin beds that were stored there. And the Princess was using the regular bed in the guestroom.

He knew his leader and Princess would want a little time alone before they too retired for the night. But he didn't care for the idea of using those small beds. Both he and JaKal were too large framed for them, but they had no choice but to make do. He'd be glad to get his sarcophagus back again; as would they all!

"Good night JaKal; good night my Princess." He bade them as he left.

"Good night Armon." JaKal answered him.

"Sweet dreams." Sohkarra wished him. And together Sohkarra and JaKal went to the couch and sat down. JaKal immediately took her into his arms in a loving manner. Sohkati came up and jumped on Sohkarra's lap. She stroked the cat in a comforting manner until she purred with contentment. For even the sacred feline was restless as she sensed trouble was afoot. For several moments, neither said anything, so wrapped up in their own thoughts were they.

Presley had rejoined them, for he had gone upstairs to make the promised phone call to his mother to let her know everything was okay. Boy, would she freak if she only knew her home was being used to hide fugitive mummies and their Princess. "You two being mushy again?" he kidded as he walked into the room.

"You guys get any closer, and you'll be sharing bandages." He was teasing them.

"But I don't wear bandages!" Sohkarra said back at him. "But it doesn't sound so bad." She turned and gave JaKal a mischievous look. JaKal smiled back at her, but his thoughts were elsewhere. For he was very aware of the very real danger they were all in. Discovery by anyone would be disastrous indeed. And his warrior instincts were in full bloom. Sohkarra knew this, and Presley too. They were both worried as well. Sohkarra longed to go back to the sphinx with all of her guardians. She longed for the freedom of movement they had been able to experience before Scarab had loosed the masses of the city on them! She'd pay him back for this if it was the last thing she did. Her body tensed as she thought this, and JaKal could feel it. "In good time Princess." He said to her. "Our time will come to pay that devil back for his deceit."

***********************************************************************

They all awakened, feeling a bit better having slept or at least rested, but they feared discovery. Rath realized this when he first caught sight of his reflection in the mirror. He froze as he heard Cameron thumping on his door, "Rise and shine, there's a good fellow... just going to put the kettle on..."

"Er... yes... I will be there shortly," Rath coughed, feeling extremely flustered. Just how was he going to get past this? Sohkarra's spell was spent!

"Princess, wherever you are... we need you..." he projected out telepathically.

Then decided to retire back to his bed till he could think of a clever way to get past Cameron! Or till Sohkarra decided to grace them with her presence, whichever came first!

Marianne noticed the same thing when Nefertina sleepily wandered into her bedroom. "Nef...your face! I see your bandages!"

"Huh?" Nefertina muttered sleepily, till she suddenly realized that she was in her necrotic state. She wore one of Marianne's nightgowns over her bandaged form!

"Great Bastet!" she gasped. "What are we going to do?"

"Er... let me think..." Marianne said. "Wait... I know! How about a beauty treatment?"

"What?"

"Here.... come into the bathroom. I'll just make it look like I'm giving you a mask and facial wash..."

Soon Nefertina's face was covered in green glop, and her hair was tucked up under a set of curlers and a salon cap. She wore Marianne's pink fuzzy bathrobe and bunny slippers. "I feel so silly!" she complained.

****************************************************************

The phone rang in Presley's home. He answered. It was Rath and Nefertina. They were calling to say that the life giving spell had worn off and they were stranded at Marianne's house. Luckily, Cameron had left early, so they were able to have some freedom. But they needed for Sohkarra to get there quickly to help them out. For Marianne had yet to find out Cameron's knowledge of the hidden artifacts.

As soon as he was off the phone, Presley yelled out to his sister and guardians.

"Whatever is it Presley?" asked a still half asleep Sohkarra. She was still wiping here eyes.

"Marianne just called to say that you need to get over there like real quick." Presley answered her.

"What's happened?" asked JaKal as he entered the room. Armon came in behind him.

"What's for breakfast?" asked the burly warrior. "Morning Princess."

She smiled at her guardians. "Good morning to you also Armon." And going over to JaKal, giving him a peck on the cheek, "Good morning my love."

He looked at her and couldn't help but marvel how lovely she looked first thing in the morning. "And Ra's greeting to you my young love."

"Later you guys." Presley interrupted. "Like I was saying, Marianne called. Rath and Nefertina need Sohkarra to go over there and help them. Their spell has worn off just like the two of you."

"So it has." Said Sohkarra as she looked at her guardians.

Sohkarra got back on the phone and told Marianne she and JaKal would be there soon and hung up the phone. Turning to her two guardians, she quickly changed them over and she and JaKal left for Marianne's house. Armon was to escort Presley to school and make sure all was quiet there.

*********************************************************************

"If Cam sees you he'll just think we're giving you a facial," Marianne said. "I do this all the time!"

"Sis... are you all right?" Cameron's voice came from behind her front door.

"Stay here..." Marianne said.

"Hey Marianne... wait... if I'm like this then Rath..."

Marianne was so flustered trying to let her brother in, that she forgot all about Rath! Cam poked his head in the door. "I say, would you like to join us for breakfast? Since it being Saturday and all..."

"Er... Tina's not feeling all that well..."

"Marianne!" Nefertina shouted, rushing out. She gasped when she saw Cameron.

"Oh, excuse me... I'll come back when you're decent..." he said, flushing profusely as he saw Nefertina in her get up. Marianne's disguise had worked!

Cameron vanished behind the door, and Marianne breathed a sigh of relief.

"Marianne, Rath! He's like me!"

"Oh good grief!" she realized. "Wait here Nefertina!"

Marianne raced down the stairs and grabbed her brother's shoulder. "Wait... I will have coffee with you! Nefertina wanted to have some beauty tips... she'll be around later..."

"I was looking forward to having breakfast with your friend. But Rutherford hasn't yet awakened!"

"Er, sometimes he's... a late sleeper," said she. "Likes to stay up all hours of the night doing his...work..."

"Hmm. He is a guest... but I would hate to have him missing breakfast..."

"I could... take it to him.." Marianne said.

"Er, do you think that's..."

"Cameron... this is the 1990's! He won't be embarrassed!"

"Oh, all right..."

Rath's nerves were shot when he heard them return. Marianne quickly came into Cameron's study.

"Are you in here?"

"Er... I am not quite... ready to come out..." he said.

"It's just me. I know... Nef told me! Hang on... you can dash up to my apartment while I've got him distracted!"

"Thank you..." he said, and emerged, dressed in his usual clothing. Marianne still felt a bit strange seeing him in his mummified form so soon after his blush of life. Yet she hid her nervousness well. Cameron was still in the front room, so they both sneaked up the back steps.

****************************************************************8

Sohkarra felt a bit compromised about trying to get to Rath and Nefertina to cast her spell. Especially since Cameron was there. But she had to, so as to keep their secret. Quickly JaKal flew her there, in armored mode. it was the fastest way, since they had not yet retrieved their vehicles.

She had cloaked JaKal in her invisibility spell so no one could see them both approach for they had no choice but to come in the light of day. A quick mental scan told her that Rath and Nefertina were upstairs in Marianne's place, while Marianne and Cameron were downstairs. Good thing Marianne had done this. "Let me off here, JaKal," she instructed, as he flew down to the room. Telekinetically she jimmied the lock.

When they got there, Marianne met them at the rear door. There was a separate back entrance to her apartment. "Please get in here quick! They both need your help."

"What's wrong?" asked JaKal. He saw the frightened look in Marianne's eyes.

"They're both weak from being away from their sarcophagi too long." She answered. And looking at Sohkarra, asked, "You said you know of a way to be able to recharge them without their sarcophagi?"

"Yes I do." Sohkarra said as she rushed past Marianne to where Nefertina and Rath were resting in the living room.

"Boy, am I glad to see you." Nefertina said to her friend.

"As am I Princess." Gasped Rath.

"You guys look pretty rough." Sohkarra kidded as she grasped Nefertina's amulet in one hand as the other hand grasped her own. Power flowed between the two of them. Nefertina immediately felt better. "Thanks." She said. Sohkarra smiled at her as she moved over toward Rath. "Say uncle." She jokingly said to her tutor.

Nefertina choked off a small laugh as she realized that Sohkarra was going to make him pay for his earlier comments.

JaKal, however, came to the Scribe's rescue. "Princess!" he said sharply. "Now is not the time for jokes. Please perform your wonders on him. We need both of them to help with the search."

Sohkarra looked at JaKal and saw that he was indeed very serious and would not tolerate any foolishness now. "Sometimes you can be such a party pooper." But she did as he asked, and taking hold of Rath's amulet (she grabbed it a little harder than needed), she repeated what she had just done with Nefertina's.

"Thank you Princess." Rath said, a little on the sarcastic side.

********************************************************************

"I am worried about Tina," Cameron said. "And your friend still hasn't awakened. It's almost half past ten!"

"Cameron, not everyone gets up at the crack of dawn," she sighed. "He's... well... just er..."

"Sis, you've been acting very strange lately," he said. "And I want to know what all this is about!

Why did those strange Shabti attack us, and who in blazes were those two who rescued us! And that woman in the animal get up had a voice exactly like your friend Jamie Garrett!"

"Cameron, someone is after us. The same man who attacked you in the museum, and who had me kidnapped..." she breathed. On the knife edge from telling him she hesitated. It might jeopardize everything to tell him any more. Carefully she chose her next sentences.

"Who is this, who you say is after us?"

"I'm not sure. I told you I don't remember much more..."

"Why did you know that they were friendly... those who rescued us... to help?" he asked.

"Because, they were the ones who showed up to rescue me and bring me back home here..." said she. It was true, partly. "And they warned me that there were some things that I should not ask about... ancient powers had been unleashed because of the testing I was doing."

"Ancient magic?" he said. "Then there is a curse..."

"Yes," said she. "And if you keep asking questions, we might end up in worse trouble. That's what Rutherford and Tina were trying to tell us."

"But what do they know about this?"

"They only know that we might be in terrible danger if we don't watch our backs," Marianne said. "And that's all I really can say."

"Why do I get the feeling there is something you're not telling me, Sis?" he asked. "I know you Marianne... and I have a gut feeling you know more then you are letting on..."

"This man who is threatening us... he... knows the ancient magic. And if I tell any more... he has put a curse on me..."

"A curse, you say," Cameron muttered. "Hmm. There are some things better left untouched. But surely Egyptian curses have no bearing..." Strange of how those words of thing being better left untouched said by Jaime that day would come back to haunt him now. Now there was one woman who definitely knew more than she was letting on.

"Then why do you wear the wedjet whenever you go on a dig?" Marianne asked him.

"You believe in those Egyptian curses, admit it!"

"I know there are some things you don't muck about with. But you believing in a curse? that's what I think is strange."

"Cameron, this man almost killed me before," said she. "And I believe..."

"Sis, if he's threatening you in any way..." Cameron said. Then he heard her door opening and slamming. "What the deuce..."

"Probably... just the wind..."

"Stay here... someone's come into your apartment..."

"It's probably Tina... or Rutherford..."

"I don't like this... Tina!" he shouted, rushing up the stairs.

"Cameron... what's gotten into you!" Marianne shrieked as she rushed after him. Curse his timing! And his inquisitive nature!

Her heart pounded as he pulled open the door. To see Rath and Nefertina. Before Marianne could blurt anything else out, she heard him say, "Ah, Rutherford! You came up here?"

"Er, yes... I am sorry I could not join you for... breakfast... but I needed to see if Tina... was all right... Marianne said she was ill..."

"Are you feeling better?" Cameron said, stepping into the apartment. Marianne gasped a sigh of relief when she saw Rath and Nefertina were in their blush of life forms again! But what a nasty shock she almost had!

"Yeah," said Nefertina. "Why do you ask?"

"Marianne said you were unwell..."

"Oh, yeah right," Nefertina giggled, after catching Rath's warning glance.

"Yeah. Just a... er...headache... but it's gone now..."

"Good," Cameron said. "Because I was wondering if you wouldn't mind joining me for a bit of a drive to Oakland. There's a rather nice view from there..."

"Er... yeah that would be great..." she said, and shot a puzzled look at Rath.

"Marianne, are you quite all right?" Cameron said, noticing Marianne looked rather pale as she tried to catch her breath. Rath rushed to her side, gripping her as Cameron took her other arm.

"Er... just... a bit winded running up these stairs," she gasped. The mere shock of the situation pumped her through with adrenaline.

This was yet something else that Marianne had not seen before.

"How did you do that?" she asked, whispering to Sohkarra who stood to one side. "It certainly was quick!"

Sohkarra shrugged. "It is something I learned from the 'Masters'" she answered, voice in a whisper. "But it is neat, isn't it? It sure is handy in emergencies. But it will not for long take the place of their sarcophagi. For it is only a temporary fix. We must still find our missing articles; and soon."

Then Cameron caught sight of JaKal and Sohkarra in the apartment.

"Er, have I seen you before..." he muttered, scratching his head, all of a sudden feeling confused.

Everyone noticed as Sohkarra, acting as if Cameron's own words were a cue, directed an intense glare at Cameron. And then it seemed as if he lost track of what he was going to say. And he just stared back at Sohkarra. She continued to glare at him.

"They just stopped by to say hi," Marianne said, clenching her teeth when she realized that Cameron might remember Sohkarra's voice. But then she too noticed Sohkarra's glare at her brother. And had an idea of what was going on. The Princess was taking care of one loose end and Marianne knew this spell of forgetting would not harm her brother at all. The time had not yet come for him to learn all there was to learn. And Sohkarra's spell would ensure that.

"Cameron, didn't you say you were going to show me where those missing items were?" Nefertina said, stepping forth to distract Cameron. Sohkarra breathed a sigh of relief as Nefertina seemed to so naturally assume her role.

"Er, Ra... I mean Rutherford and I were going to do something with Mr. and Ms. Garrett," Marianne said. "They wanted... to er...visit the museum... so I was going to take them."

"Oh, I'll catch you up later then for lunch," Said Cameron. It was if he had completely lost his train of thought as he forgot to question "Jaime". Marianne let out a long breath as she looked at Sohkarra looked back at her and gave her a 'thumbs up' sign indicating that this one particular problem was solved.

Cameron would not remember thinking he had heard her voice the evening they had to remove themselves rather quickly from the beach.

JaKal could hardly contain his excitement as Cameron and Nefertina prepared to leave. For she would find their sarcophagi. And in his contained excitement, he also squeezed Sohkarra's hand in silent thanks for having taken care of one problem. Now Cameron wouldn't be worrying about where he may have heard the Princess' voice before.

"See you, Sis," Cameron said to Marianne as he left. He gave her a quick peck on the cheek goodbye. With a wink to the others, Nefertina quickly followed.

"Get ready to follow him," Marianne said to the others.

"I'll use my power to summon Armon," Sohkarra said. "He'll bring the Hot Ra and..."

"Just you wait a moment," JaKal said, taking Sohkarra by the arm. "It will be rather conspicuous for an Egyptian vehicle to go racing off after Cameron's motorcycle..."

Contemplating the wisdom of JaKal's words, Sohkarra's eyes brightened as she came up with a second course of action "JaKal, you and I can fly after them," she said. "Then we can call Armon... my invisibility spell will cloak us both!"

"That will be acceptable Princess." JaKal concurred. Sohkarra just glared at him as he addressed her as "Princess". But she wisely kept her own counsel. For now was not the time to debate it. But later…….

"And what about us?" Rath asked.

"Sit here and look pretty. And try and find out just who all is looking for us," Sohkarra teased him.

Hastily she and JaKal transformed to armored form. Sohkarra invoked her cloaking spell and they vanished from sight. "See you soon." Was her closing remark to her two friends.

"That woman never ceases to amaze me," Marianne said to Rath, who was in his humanized blush of life form once more.

Rath had to agree, for he too, had yet to get used to all the extra powers she had somehow managed to acquire without his knowledge. And he didn't fully agree with her wanting to acquire them in the first place. But he wisely kept his counsel on this matter, for he knew she would argue vehemently in her own defense concerning this. And he had to admit that those same powers had come in handy on more than one occasion. But he was always watchful, lest those powers somehow become more than she could handle. Too much power was as bad as not enough. Especially those she had learned.

**********************************************************************

Nefertina clung to the back of the motorcycle, wind in her hair as Cameron drove along highway. Far below the sea lapped and frothed at the base of the high cliff upon which they rode. The black asphalt ribbon snaked for miles.

Nefertina's mind was a million miles away from her duty as she felt the warmth of Cameron's body against hers. He seemed so exciting! And he loved motorcycles and speed just as she did. She wore his borrowed helmet, but her long black hair streamed out the back as she daydreamed. Fast cars, fancy clothing, being a woman was much more exciting in this time than in ancient Egypt.

Egypt. Cameron rode up and down the Nile on his Harley Davidson. From Memphis to Thebes. What a way to go. Someday they would have to take that trip together. Yet in her mind she flinched, when she realized what he did. Unearthing mummies in tombs! Desecration! She shivered when she remembered. Then tensed up.

"What's wrong luv," he asked her. "You've been awful quiet lately."

"Uh, it's hard to talk over this engine!" she shouted.

"I know. Listen to that power!" Cameron laughed. Nefertina sighed deeply. Why must duty come before having fun? Now she felt a bit of the burden JaKal must feel, compromising her own wishes for those of her masters.

"Where are we going?" she asked him.

"Just to a small storage facility," he told her. "Nice and remote, no chance they'll be stolen again."

"But you stole them in the first place when you dug them up," she grumbled angrily. Even her personal feelings were shifting. He was being nothing but nice, but what he did made her ill.

*******************************************************************

JaKal watched the cycle far below. "So far Nefertina is playing her part well..."

High above Sohkarra sensed her friend's mental conflict. "I'm sorry Nef," she muttered to herself. "It's not easy doing that." For she herself what her friend was going through. She had faced the same dilemma in the past when she had to keep her feelings for JaKal secret for the welfare of everyone. "JaKal, sometimes you think too much about duty," she muttered. nd she wasn't just referring to the present situation.

"But we must find our sarcophagi," he reminded her.

"I'm also well aware of that JaKal, but I'm also worried about Nefertina," said she. "For I think she is getting attached to this Cameron Ellis..."

"That is unfortunate," JaKal sighed. "But I hope she will remember..."

"She will JaKal," Sohkarra answered. "I know she will."

******************************************************************

Scarab laughed with glee when he saw the afternoon news. "At last those Mummies and their royal brats will be flushed into the open!"

"You said that last night, and lost half your Shabti!" Heka reminded him.

"I know, but it was a necessary sacrifice," Scarab said, tossing his popcorn at her. "You know better than to question my brilliant plans!"

"Oh yeah, real brilliant," Heka grumbled to herself. "Was it part of your plan that they got away?"

"That Egyptologist has unwittingly brought them right into my hands!" he laughed. "For they may well figure out where the Sarcophagi are interred. Then we will have them!"

"And what of the others?"

"They will come for them. That is when I strike!" Scarab laughed. "The authorities will catch them trying to steal the artifacts... arrest them... then we will have them!"

"But what if..."

Scarab ignored her next comment as he rushed to the phone. "Hello?" he said. "Is this channel 2 news? This is Harris Stone speaking. I'd like to give you a story for your next news feature. About the recovery of the Egyptian artifacts. You might know Dr. Ellis will be there at two o'clock for an interview..."

*******************************************************************

Cameron pulled up to the storage warehouse. He parked the cycle, and took Nefertina's hand.

"You'll really get a kick out of this," he said.

"What... where are we?"

"You seemed quite interested in those artifacts. Well. I thought there would be no harm in showing them to you... we'll just nip in and take a quick peek!"

Nefertina bit her tongue. Emotions surged within her as she followed him. He appeared like a gleeful child showing off his comic book collection. Was this all Egyptian history meant to him?

Some game? "Not everyone gets to see this," he whispered to her. "I thought your interest in your own history and all, you'd appreciate it..."

She let him lead her inside. There were several large packing crates with markings upon them.

"Well, all I see are a bunch of boxes," she grumbled annoyed as she choked her anger.

"Take a look at this," he said, opening one crate. Inside was her own beloved sarcophagus. "It's in remarkable preservation..."

"That... is nice," she choked, as he cleared the packing material aside. Her hand went to the gold paint on her own possession.

"It would seem Sohkarra had a sidekick in being different, for this sarcophagus belongs to another remarkable young lady," he said, as he read the hieroglyphics on its front. "The odd thing is, the inscription says that the occupant is a charioteer. But the name is in the masculine... while the mummy who was inside was female..."

"Why... is that strange?" Nefertina asked him.

"She obviously must have masqueraded as a man, to be a charioteer," Cameron said. "It is quite intriguing that perhaps this... Nepher had a desire... to step out of a traditional role. She... died at the prime of her life... judging from what I can recall from x-rays we took at the museum....I would have loved to have seen her and the Princess together. What a pair they must have made!"

Nefertina felt odd at being talked about like some physical object. Could she stop from choking him? Now she knew how Sohkarra must have felt back when they had dinner at his apartment. It felt strange to hear herself talked about as if she were not here.

"But why would you care about that... it's just... a sarcophagus you dug up..."

"The lives of these mummies fascinate me. Every day I am learning more about them by unearthing them. And to think there was another woman who challenged held views of what a woman should be. That is fascinating! For just think what it will mean for women today to be inspired by this woman's story..."

"That's nice and good, but you are desecrating tombs!" she spat.

"Tina, it may seem that way to some. But it's not about treasure hunting, like many say. It's the chance to learn about their lives... and keep those long hidden stories alive. And that is why I love Egyptology. It's not about gold or treasure. But knowledge. And it's good sport to learn about the past..."

"It's not just a game to you then," Nefertina hoped.

"My dear girl, is that what you're so upset about?" he asked. "You think all I care about is the sport of treasure hunting?"

If only he knew. But this seemed as good a chance as any... "Cameron... I misjudged you..." she said quietly.

"Tina, whatever is the matter?" he asked. "You look so sad... can I help? I thought showing you these parts of your history would cheer you up... to learn about a woman who overstepped known roles... I simply thought..."

"Cameron... I don't know what to say," she choked. Slowly tears formed in her eyes. Cameron noticed the tear and slowly wiped it away with his pocket handkerchief.

"Hush now, don't cry... I am sorry if I did something... was it something I said..."

"No," she said, looking into his blue eyes. "I... I...you're being so nice... and I'm thinking all these things about you... and I'm all confused... and... I've never felt like this before..."

"Sh, I know," he said. And kissed away her next tear. "There now... please don't go and cry..."

He folded her in his arms and hugged her reassuringly. Nefertina cursed herself for losing control like this. Her lips found his in the darkness. For a moment she let her doubts slip away in the warmth of his breath entering her mouth. Cameron gently moved his head from side to side, deepening the gesture as she swooned in the comfort of his arms. Just then they heard a knocking at the door.

"This is Channel 2 news... are you there, Mr. Cameron..."

"What... you jerk!" Nefertina spat, pushing him away.

"But I didn't..." he protested. "Tina... what's going on here?"

Just then a flood of reporters came in to surround the protesting Cameron. He pushed Nefertina behind him as he held up his hands. "What is the meaning of this!" he shouted.

"But we were told you were available for an interview..." said the confused woman in the business suit.

"Get out of here!" he cried, holding up his hands as if to fend them off.

******************************************************************

From above JaKal and Sohkarra held their breaths, had they been alive. "That idiot!" JaKal cursed "He's ruining everything!"

"Wait, he's the perfect distraction..." Sohkarra said. "Let's call Armon and start getting those Sarcophagi..."

"But those reporters..."

"Don't see us," Sohkarra said. "Let's move! Armon should be here soon!"

Shaking his Horus-visored Head, JaKal flew right over their heads. A sudden wind stirred up the swarm of reporters, and everyone held onto their hats. Nefertina was almost swept over as Cameron steadied her. "What the deuce was that?" he wondered.

"One of those things you were told about leaving alone!" Nefertina snorted as they tried to rush inside and slam the door shut. "So fame and fortune aren't' important to you?"

"I honestly didn't want them here!" Cameron shouted back. "I have no idea why they are..."

Just then there was the sound of movement from within the building. Cameron rushed inside. "What was that..."

"Don't go in there," Nefertina said to him. But he moved too fast for her to stop him. True to their form the reporters rushed after them. Suddenly an invisible force threw them backwards. There was the sound of a motor revving up.

Cameron shook himself off, and hit the alarm button to one side. Nefertina stuck her fingers in her ears as she heard the claxon wailing. There was the sound of something being dragged and an engine starting up. "What the..."

"Stop thieves!" he shouted as a vehicle rushed by, with distinctive Egyptian markings. Nefertina shoved him out of the way just in time.

"We are live on the scene at the Museum storage facility... with a robbery in progress..." the reporter went on as the camera trained on the vehicle as it sped away. Cameron rushed to his motorcycle and leapt upon it.

"Wait!" Nefertina cried. "Stop... Cameron!"

He turned, gunning the cycle, and grabbed her as he streaked past. Nefertina perched behind him. "Where are you going?" she demanded.

"To get those artifacts back!"

"Cameron... wont' the police take care of this..." she shouted.

"They won't get here in time... I'm not about to let those sarcophagi slip away this time!" he shouted.

"Floor it Armon!" Sohkarra cried. For the Harley Davidson's engine thundered against the cliff side, even drowning out that of the Hot Ra. Sure enough Armon saw the motorcycle as it caught up with them.

"Oh no, that idiot!" Sohkarra sighed.

"Make us invisible..." JaKal said to her.

"I'll try, but it's going to take a lot of concentration to make this whole vehicle invisible..."

"I'll distract them," JaKal shouted, as he dove between them. Fire arrows rained along the highway. Cameron gasped as he saw the flashes of fire. Barely he managed to swerve to avoid them. This distraction gave Armon the extra time to floor the Hot Ra and rush away. The news van sped after Cameron's cycle, hot on his tail. Cameron gritted his teeth and accelerated.

"Stop it!" Nefertina shouted. "You'll get us killed!"

"I'm not letting those sarcophagi out of my grip again..."

"Stop this bike right now!" Nefertina shouted in his ear. "It's not worth risking your life!"

"Egyptology is my life!" he cried.

****************************************************************

"He won't give up!" Sohkarra grumbled as she saw him hot on their trail. Just then JaKal's thoughts came into her head. "Oh great, this is perfect..."

"What?"

"That newsvan's been taping us as we got away!" Sohkarra grumbled, and muttered an ancient curse. Fortunately Armon couldn't hear it.

Scarab was watching the feed from the newsvan. As soon as he had called them he had activated a special signal splitter that recorded what they saw from their cameras. He could not see JaKal, but he could see the presence of the Hot Ra speeding away. "Perfect!" he cried.

"But that Egyptologist..." said Heka. "He's going right after them..."

"He's a fool," Scarab laughed. "He'll just lead the reporters right to the Mummies and their precious charges. They will find it impossible to hide now!"

"But what if they find out about Cameron Ellis and his connection to the museum?

Wouldn't we look like fools for letting an exhibit get stolen like that?"

"That may be but..."

"Very bad publicity..."

"Then I'll just pin it on that upstart Ellis," Scarab snarled. "If they connect this disappearance to the Mummies, then he'll be a good scapegoat for letting that girl in with him!"

"But you're forgetting one thing. Remember your old pal Prof. Bertram? That just happens to be his son you might be trying to frame... and you know how bad his temper is when his son gets into trouble!"

"I... didn't think of that," Scarab muttered. "I need Bertram Ellis' support to keep my associations open... but his son is an idiot..."

"But who will be an idiot if they no longer want you as a financial backer... and Bertram Ellis knows some pretty powerful people beside just you boss..."

"That's silliness! That museum wouldn't be half the museum without my funding!" Scarab laughed.

"But your cover and all... people may ask some pretty embarrassing questions... if I know your buddy Bertram he'll call in the reporters and publicly blame you for the loss of the exhibit, and trying to pin it on his son... and you can't afford the bad PR..."

"Nonsense! When you're as rich as I am..."

"Your investors might get a little scared..."

"Curse you Heka!" Scarab roared as he hurled the remote control at her.

*******************************************************************

Cameron, you are crazy!" Nefertina shouted to him as he kept hot on the tail of the Hot Ra. "This is nuts! I demand you let me off this now!"

"Come along, old girl, we cannot let them get away with this..." he said.

Nefertina gritted her teeth. How could she stop him? Then she realized she had to do something or else they'd never get away. But the dilemma was how to stop the bike without hurting Cameron.

Suddenly a thought came into her mind. Suddenly there was a loud popping noise that came from the motorcycle as Cameron swerved. Barely he managed to pull to the side of the road as his cycle pulled a flat.

Sohkarra reached out with her mind, sweeping up the bike in a psycokinetic cushion. Safely the bike managed to pull over.

"Of all the cursed... bloody..." Cameron shouted, cursing up a blue streak worthy of a sailor. Nefertina watched as he cursed his bike, his luck, and even several major deities ascribed to in the Twentieth century. "And if I didn't know any better, I'd swear that the Pharaoh's curse extended to the Princess. For she is most determined to guard her secrets, even from wherever she may be. But I will have them from her."

"Cameron... stop," said she, trying to calm him down and thinking that same Princess was closer than he could ever imagine, and yes, she was most determined to keep her secrets. "There's nothing we can do... the police are gonna have to handle this..."

****************************************************************

It had been Rath's idea to try a new spell he'd recently perfected. Using the knowledge from a talisman that had shrunk them all, he proceeded to shrink all five sarcophagi for easy transport. He had gotten the idea of the size from the pencil boxes Presley took to school. And knew it would make for easy way to move their precious cargo.

Armon and JaKal wasted no time in getting the sarcophagi to the home of Presley. Sohkarra had called Marianne and Rath to come get his and Nefertina's. Indeed the two small packages were wrapped in cases that looked very nondescript. It amused Marianne to see that in use as Rath tucked his into his pocket and took them upstairs. They were about the size of matchboxes.

Before long they came to her home, jumped off the cable car to get back to the apartment. As he helped her out of her coat he noticed an odd flashing red light.

Rath and Marianne then proceeded to take the small packages to her home Then all that remained was to await the return of Cameron and Nefertina. "Excuse me, but what does that strange hailing mean?"

"What strange... oh that's the answering machine... for the phone..." she said, and went to check. Her feelings surged as Cameron's panicky voice came over the phone. Rath lay a supporting hand on her shoulders and squeezed gently.

He sensed how hard it was for his love to keep such a secret from her own brother for so long. "Tell me, at least they didn't get hurt..." she sighed.

"We had best get these to their respective places," Rath said to her, trying to change the subject. Carefully Marianne opened the case and removed the two miniaturized sarcophagi. She took one upstairs to Nefertina's guestroom, as Rath took his down to her basement laboratory.

Rath quickly decided to settle into his sarcophagus for a much needed recharge. Although he was feeling all right from Sohkarra's renewal spell, it never hurt to be cautious. Hastily he muttered as he tried to recall the counter spell for enlargement.

Marianne had no sooner placed Nefertina's sarcophagus into place than she saw it suddenly growing in size.

Armon gasped with surprise as Sohkarra's spell suddenly made his sarcophagus grow into it's full size! "Whoah, that's just like what happened to us before," he said.

"It's the same spell, only I don't need the talisman," Sohkarra smiled.

"Now in you get! It's better to be safe than sorry for you guys have been away from these for quite a while."

"But I'm due back at the beefy burger this afternoon! They need me on shift..." Armon protested.

"Oh, okay! Better get there," Sohkarra said to him, with a wink. "Wouldn't want you to be late and draw attention to yourself." Quickly he hurried upstairs.

Presley giggled as he saw JaKal carrying a small hand size version of his sarcophagus. They looked like the nicknacks you could buy in a gift shop. "Boy that's compact! Hey, you could sell those at my mom's gift shop and no one would know the difference!"

"Young Prince, that would hardly be good for us," JaKal sighed.

"Hey, better put it away or I'll wanna keep my pencils in it!" Presley joked again. "Walter has a pencil case just like that!" Sohkarra giggled at the thought of JaKal's sarcophagus being used to carry school materials in. Imagine bringing a mummy to school for show and tell!

But all thoughts of frivolousness left as she spoke the spells for her and Jakal's cases to increase in size. And bade him enter.

"Pleasant dreams my love." She said to him as he stepped in. But not before giving her a quick kiss.

"Excellent job today my young love." Said he as watched her face glow. She reveled in his praise.

*********************************************************************

"Curses of Set!" Marianne heard a muffled exclamation from downstairs. She rushed down, expecting the worst. Rath marched up the stairs, fuming. In his hand he carried a cute little version of his serpent sarcophagus. It was now the size of a shoebox, neatly painted as a miniature.

"What's wrong?" she asked him. He shouted a streak of words in Msirian that Marianne fortunately could not understand.

"What's wrong you ask? What's wrong?" he spluttered, switching to English when he realized she couldn't understand him. "Look at this!" So saying he held out the sarcophagus, still one cubit long. "How can I recharge in this?"

"Oh crumbs!" Marianne realized when she saw what he meant. The spell had worked on Nefertina's, but not his! "It's... a bit bigger," said she. "I don't know...

"It's rather cute. And Sohkarra did manage to enlarge hers, Armon's and JaKal's. Would you like me to call her to give you a hand?"

"Cute! Cute!" he cried out. "Is that all you have to say! You could not even recharge a sacred cat in it! Do you realize what would happen if......you call her? I would never hear the end of it."

"Rath, calm down, for Pete's sake!" she shouted back. "You're hardly any good to yourself or to me exploding like that! Now sit down and take a deep breath..."

"I... don't breathe..." He gritted, trying to contain his anger. He didn't know what made him angrier; not being able to enlarge his sarcophagi or the thought of having to ask Sohkarra to do it for him. He knew she would enjoy that way too much!

Marianne took the miniature sarcophagus from him as if she feared he'd break it in his rage. Hand on his head he sighed as Marianne tried to hold back her laughter at the ridiculousness of this predicament. And then she left him fuming as she left to give Sohkarra a quick call. She would ask the Princess to be discreet when handling this, but she immediately knew what that answer would be. And again she laughed to herself. She was glad she had to go and pick up Cameron and Nefertina.

"I'd best go now and pick up my brother," she said when she had returned to where she had left Rath.. "He's stranded, and thank goodness he has triple AAA otherwise I don't know what I'd do. And I called Sohkarra. She said she'll be here when she gets here." Of course the Princess hadn't said that, but she couldn't help but pick on Rath a little more.

Rath sighed deeply as she left to pick them up. He had tried all he could think of to enlarge the blasted thing, and it was hopeless. What had gone wrong with the spell? And he knew Sohkarra would have something to say when she arrived, whenever that would be, about his predicament. She would not let this one go.

Cameron was equally fuming when Marianne picked him and Nefertina up in his Dodge Ram pickup. Like many an Egyptologist he had a useful flatbed truck for hauling equipment. And this was no exception. Marianne sometimes used it to get around for short jaunts. But she preferred public transportation, since the museum was within a quick ten minute's cable car ride from her apartment. His motorcycle fit neatly into the back of the truck.

"I cannot believe it..." he muttered. Nefertina and Marianne exchanged worried looks. This was tearing both of them up inside to see him in such distress. Both cared for him very much in their own ways. Hurriedly Marianne headed in to see if Rath was okay. He was nowhere to be found...

She couldn't imagine where he could have gone. And she then noticed the blinking on the answering machine once again. She went over to see who had left the message, as to how it had been cleared before. She let out a sigh of relief when she heard Sohkarra's voice saying that Rath had come over to Presley's house with his "item" he needed to have "fixed". She felt a little sorry for Rath as she realized that Sohkarra would no doubt be 'most helpful'. But not without a price. And Marianne grinned as she imagined just what that price would be.

***********************************************************************

JaKal had left Sohkarra to something she was studying. She had several books with her about signal waves and telepathy. She had said she had a plan, but had not yet disclosed it. And when he had asked her what she had in mind, all he got for an answer was that she would tell him when the time was right, for she had more studying to do.

But now she thought she had the mother of all ideas. What if she could use a television station transmitter combined with her own telepathy? She could then mass broadcast her spell of forgetting on the whole city. For now that they had found their sarcophagi, now the other part of the problem could be dealt with.

And she went to JaKal to bounce her plan off him. For she valued his opinion above all others.

Armon was still at Beefy Burger working the late shift. So JaKal was alone in the attic where they had stored his and Armon's sarcophagi. And he heard her come in. And the small knocking sound on the lid.

He stepped out and stretched, feeling much stronger. "What is it my Princess?" he asked solicitously.

"I've got a plan to end this madness JaKal." She answered him. And at his look of wonder, explained it to him. He was apprehensive at first, but quickly came around. It sounded like it could work! And they made their plans to go to the station the next morning to put the plan to work.

The next day was bright and sunny as two ancient ones made their way to the TV station. There were lots of people doing many different types of jobs. Sohkarra was fascinated at all the activity. And for the briefest moment, she forgot why she and JaKal were here.

And as they prepared to go into a room marked "control", they were distracted by the sound of Cameron's voice. And that of Marianne. Cameron was there to conduct an interview in an effort to clear himself from the mixup of the again missing artifacts. And he had asked his sister to accompany him, which she had. She would lend moral support.

And all at once, the twins noticed the couple.

"Heard about the interview I'm giving, eh?" piped Cameron. Marianne wondered what the two of them were up to.

"Er…..yes." JaKal spoke up. "My……wife…..wanted to join you for she has something to add to your interview. She has seen something most interesting that she feels goes along with what you will discuss."

"Great, come on in then." Cameron enthusiastically said to them.

Sohkarra and JaKal started to follow when Marianne grabbed Sohkarra by the arm. JaKal saw this, but moved on when Sohkarra motioned him to do so.

"What are you two about?" whispered Marianne to the Princess.

"I'm going to do my own 'broadcast." Sohkarra explained. "Scarab is behind all of this and he is hoping we will try to stop Cameron from speaking."

"And you're not going to?" Marianne asked. She was getting a bad feeling about this.

"No, he has already done what I needed; namely getting JaKal and I into the control room."

"What are you going to do?"

"Like I said, I'm going to do my own broadcast." Sohkarra repeated. "A spell of forgetting going out to the masses."

"Don't you think that's a bit extreme?" Marianne asked. "How can you be sure it will work?" She really didn't want Sohkarra trying this.

Sohkarra smiled at her. "How can I be sure it won't if I don't try?" And she pulled her arm away from Marianne, and proceeded to follow JaKal and Cameron. Marianne had no recourse but to follow. If Sohkarra was bent on doing this, there was little or nothing she could do to stop her once her mind was made up.

And she knew that Sohkarra and her guardians would try anything to get rid of the infernal hounding that Scarab had loosed on them. And if it would foil Scarab's plans, so much the better.

The interview went on with a man from the station conducting it. Cameron and Sohkarra proceeded to have their own lively little debate about the ethical standards practiced by the ones who excavated the ancient tombs. Was it desecration or science? JaKal thought the debate would have been most appropriate if not for the graveness of the situation. And he gave the signal to Sohkarra to begin her process.

Sohkarra acknowledged. She apologized quickly to Marianne for what she was going to do, for she would have to put her friend out with a sleep spell as well as everyone else. But unlike everyone else, she would place a mental shield to Marianne's mind to make it so she would remember everything. Only her brother and the rest of the city would hopefully forget. If all went well.

Armon, Nefertina, Rath, with Presley, were at strategic areas around the city. They were to wait for JaKal to contact them to tell them that everyone in their area was sound asleep. But just before they started, such a commotion sounded outside. When JaKal looked out to see what was happening, he saw several shabtis. He knew that Scarab had sent them to prevent the interview.

"There is trouble heading this way Princess." He told her.

And at her look, "Scarab has sent his henchmen to try to stop us."

"You must handle it alone JaKal." She said. "I'm sorry, but I've got to do this now, while I can. For we may not get a second chance."

"I understand." He answered. And he spoke his chant "With the strength of Ra!" and all at once he stood in his formidable blue and gold armor. And quickly, before he stepped out, he went to Sohkarra and grabbed her to him for a quick kiss of luck. "Ra's power be with you my young love. And I will see you when this is over."

"And the strength of Isis to you my love." She answered him quickly. And all at once he was gone.

And she could hear the sound of combat outside. But she felt JaKal's strength and knew that for now, he was all right. And reluctantly she abandoned her contact with JaKal and concentrated on her own task. For she knew that even with the signals that normally went out from the station, her own strength would be taxed. She had never tried to invoke sleep and forgetting on a whole city before. And with a last look at Marianne and Cameron, who were sleeping peacefully nearby, she started.

She closed her eyes and began to speak. She spoke of how everything that had been spoken of ancient beings up and walking around among the living had been a story fabricated by an old man who wanted to live forever. There were no such beings up and walking among them. Forget……Forget…….Forget…….everything but the name of Harris Stone who had been responsible. Forget……Forget……Forget.

The whole process took the better part of half an hour. But to Sohkarra, getting more and more exhausted, it felt more like days. But she could feel that it seemed to be working. And the phone rang. It was Armon telling her that everyone was beginning to wake up in his sector.

And so it was with the others.

Marianne and Cameron woke. Cameron had no idea what had happened. Marianne, on the other hand, noticed Sohkarra at the control panel, head in her hands, the microphone still near her. She had switched it off.

She went over to her and gave her a gentle shake. "Are you all right?" she asked concernedly.

Sohkarra saw that both twins had awakened. And looked up at Marianne looking down at her. "Yes. I was successful." And she smiled weakly. "And you can be looking forward to hearing a statement very soon from Mr. Harris Stone clearing Cameron of any charges."

"You did all this for him?" Marianne asked. "After he's been after you all these months?"

"Yes." Sohkarra answered. "For he was only doing what his heart told him. And I guess I do sort of owe him for getting me back into the world and getting me to those with whom I belong."

"When you put it that way……" Marianne replied.

"I do…." Sohkarra answered. "And now I want to go home."

*********************************************************************

Things were finally back to normal. The mummies and their Princess had been able to move back into their beloved sphinx under the cover of darkness. And for the first time in a couple of weeks, were able to sleep with no possibility of discovery. Marianne had been a little saddened for she had enjoyed the presence of Rath and Nefertina under her and Cameron's roof.

Sohkarra, JaKal, and Armon managed to vacate Presley's house before Amanda arrived back home from her convention, which had luckily been extended by a few days. All breathed a collective sigh of relief.

And Cameron had been most surprised when one day, out of the blue, a beautiful black and gold sarcophagus with the horse inscription and the beautiful hieroglyphics with its inlaid stones, found its way to the museum. He could not believe his incredible luck when he read the inscriptions that revealed it to be the missing sarcophagus of the Princess Sohkarra! Minus the mummy of course.

And he had told Marianne, it had just appeared; no note; no explanation; nothing. But Marianne had known where it came from. She knew it was Sohkarra's way of apologizing to Cameron for all the trouble he had found himself in. Even if that trouble had been more dangerous for herself, her brother's host, and their guardians. It was also her way of saying she would only give so much to her curious brother. He would have to content himself with the sarcophagus, for the body of the Princess would never be his. Of course she couldn't tell Cameron that the owner was still using it.

And then had come the biggest miracle of all: Scarab, AKA Harris Stone, due to unforeseen circumstances and public outcry, had been forced to go before the press himself and exonerate Cameron from any wrongdoing by admitting that it was his carelessness that had allowed the thefts in the first place.

And to celebrate, Marianne asked Sohkarra and Nefertina to join her at her house for a 'girl's day out'. She was planning to treat her friends to a day spent at the mall clothes shopping and whatever else people do at malls and then dinner at Ruby Tuesday's; a restaurant that she favored. Plus too, she had been clued in on by Nefertina that Sohkarra had wanted to ask her something about some material she had read in one of 'those' books she had gotten from the great covered market place, as they referred to the mall as. Marianne could just imagine what it was she wanted to ask about.

JaKal went along with this plan of Marianne's not only to appease his Princess, but also because Nefertina would be there. After this latest Scarab incident, he felt his young love could never be too safe. And this time he had not relented when Sohkarra insisted that she would be fine. They had argued for a time, but JaKal had won out in the end. Sohkarra fumed, but decided to accept it. After all, these fellow ancients she considered more as friends than guardians anyway. And Nefertina had been her best friend in the before. So it kept the peace if JaKal thought he won that particular discussion. And she and Nefertina would still go out and enjoy themselves with their newest friend.

In the meantime, the male guardians were going with Presley to do some other things. It would be a 'guys' day out' for all of them. And they all needed a break after this latest incident. And for Sohkarra, fun was going to be the byword, in spite of her head guardian's ever-protective ways.

When Sohkarra and Nefertina arrived at Marianne's they were greeted warmly by their friend. She had them come in for soft drinks before they left, for the day had turned out rather warm. Nefertina had worn a one piece jumpsuit (the shorts kind) that was a light sky blue color that set off her dark hair nicely.

Sohkarra had done her blush of life spell on all her friends prior to their departure to their respective destinations today.

The Princess herself wore a sundress with spaghetti straps that showed off the tan she had managed to acquire. And even her hair seemed to lighten up a bit from the sun. And Marianne wore an Indian type skirt with a camisole type white blouse. All in all, they all looked like people out to enjoy their day, which in fact they were.

Once at the mall, Marianne couldn't help but be amazed at how the two ancient ladies absolutely marveled at the wonders that were here. She had always taken them for granted for she had grown up in a time when malls were just a fact of life. Never had she dreamed that she would meet people from an ancient time, much less royals and their guardians who had never seen a mall before, much less been to one. And she enjoyed watching their sense of wonder for every time they came, they saw something new that she had never noticed. So these excursions had become more fun for her as well. A nice break from the labs.

And inevitably, they came to the bookstore. And Sohkarra immediately wanted to know where the section was that housed "those" books such as she had read and wanted to ask Marianne about. Nefertina led her over to the area where she had found the one she had taken to her Princess. The same one she had said to read while she was alone.

Sohkarra looked at the sign that read "Romance" and "Alphabetically by Author". She went up and just randomly took one off the shelf. She didn't recognize the author's name, but sensed that the material such as she wanted to ask Marianne about could be found within. Her enhanced senses told her where to look. And as Marianne and Nefertina looked on, she read. And promptly turned red.

This prompted her two friends to giggle at her reaction. Sohkarra looked up, smiling. "I cannot believe what I'm reading." She shyly said. "The scribes of our time would never even think of writing such things. These writers today are very bold indeed." She looked at Nefertina who just shrugged. "Ask Marianne." She said simply.

"What is it Sohkarra?" Marianne asked. And she too looked at the page that Sohkarra had opened the book up to. She smiled as she knew now what Nefertina had warned her about Sohkarra asking about. "We'll talk about this when we get back to my house." She said to the younger woman.

"Why not here?" asked Sohkarra. After all, this is where the books were kept.

"Well..." Marianne started. What does one say to that? Nefertina giggled again as she saw that Sohkarra had stumped Marianne with that pointed question. Oh well, she had warned her.

"This just isn't something that one discusses in a public place." Marianne reasoned to the younger woman.

"Why not?"

"Well…" Marianne tried again. "This type of subject matter is best kept to the privacy of home and among friends. It's not an acceptable topic of public discussion. That's all."

Sohkarra didn't understand this, but it was clear that Marianne didn't want to discuss it here. And she would respect her friend's wishes. "But I wish to talk about it when we return."

Marianne let a breath of relief. Thank goodness! "Agreed." She said back to Sohkarra. And Nefertina hadn't stopped smiling. "I warned you," she kiddingly whispered to Marianne. "She's been on such a roll lately that I almost pity JaKal." But the truth was that she too wanted to hear the modern scientist's explanation of what Sohkarra was asking about. And they proceeded to continue to enjoy their day. And both Sohkarra and Nefertina enjoyed the culinary delights to be found at Ruby Tuesday's. All three women swore that they'd need to spend at least a week in the gym to work off what they had just ingested.

But once back at Marianne's home, Sohkarra wasted no time in getting her explanations. But this time Marianne was ready for her. She went and got a book she hadn't thought about in a long while and handed it to her two companions.

"I want to know what they mean by writing this material." Sohkarra asked her friend as she thought of the type of book Nefertina had gotten for her and had been reading the night all the craziness had started. Nefertina had taken a seat next to her on the lush couch in Marianne's living room. She was most eager to hear this, but didn't want to appear too as though she was. But she thought Sohkarra was a bit too slow at going through this book.

"Is this a manual of human relations to be read before mating can take place?" Asked Sohkarra innocently.

Like a parent trying to explain the facts of life to a teenager, Marianne picked her words carefully. She wasn't sure just what exactly Sohkarra knew of human relations. "Do you know what takes place between a man and woman?"

Both the ancient women looked at her. And at each other. For neither had been with a man in the past.

Sohkarra was the first to answer. "I know where babies come from, if that is what you mean. I helped deliver many babies, including JaKal's own son." She answered. "But as to personal experience, I have none. JaKal was married, remember? And there was no way I would have done anything to hurt his wife and child." And at Marianne's nod, said, "And there was no one else who interested me."

"Yeah, and me either." Nefertina perked up. "I was too busy being the Pharaoh's charioteer."

"I see." Marianne answered. That at least answered the question of ancient honor. She knew that Sohkarra and JaKal were a pair in the here and now with her father's blessing, but they had both kept their mutual desires at bay in the past for the sake of his family. She mentally cheered them both.

"So?" came the question. "Are you going to let us in on this modern secret?"

"It's no secret." Marianne started. "For it is something that is as old as time itself. From the earliest humans. Even those older than yourselves."

"Come on…." Nefertina pleaded. "Don't go all scientific on us."

Marianne then thought of a book she had once acquired a few years ago when she had been dating a fellow professor. It turned out that the relationship had fizzled before anything significant could happen due to the fact that their professional egos had gotten in the way. Such was the way of young scientists both hell bent on their own projects. So the book sat in a bookshelf, forgotten until now when she had given it to her friends to hash over. It was called the Joys of Sex. And it had a picture of a couple on the cover. Both the younger women looked at this and glanced at each other.

She smiled to herself as she thought of when she thought she may actually need it. At any rate, Sohkarra would get an eyeful of what she was asking about. So would Nefertina, for that matter.

"What is the significance of this book?" asked Sohkarra.

"This book explains the real life way to do the kinds of things they describe in those books you two like so much." Marianne explained. "And it has pictures to show you just what they are writing about. Kind of like an instruction manual."

Nefertina was bursting with curiosity. "Why do you have this type of book?" she asked. "You're a scientist. You should know about this stuff."

"Do you think Rath is the first man I've dated?" asked Marianne. She was amused, for she felt just like a mother telling her daughters about the "birds and the bees".

Nefertina stammered at that. "Well, no…that's not what I meant at all. But I thought that as a scientist, you'd already know all about that sort of thing."

And she actually blushed.

Sohkarra took a more active interest in it . "I remember when I was younger, Rath tried to explain to me about this sort of thing." She looked up and grinned at her companions. "But somehow, he just couldn't. Especially when I started telling him things." And at the looks she got, "Well, I did see Kiya when she mated with the stallion, so how different can it be?"

Marianne could not contain the choking that came up in her throat. She didn't know whether to laugh or take this girl to a sex therapist. "Well…….." she started to say, but then she saw that Sohkarra had gone back to flipping pages fairly quickly at first, but the further she went, the slower the page turning. This book had a combination of drawings and actual photos! And both her eyes and Nefertina's were big as saucers.

"Wow," she couldn't help but exclaim. "Do people from this time actually do this?" She was looking at a particularly athletic picture where the couple looked as if they were made of rubber bands, such was the position they were in. She showed it to Nefertina, who also couldn't believe it.

"Yes, they do." Marianne answered. "And much more."

"So I see." Sohkarra exclaimed, continuing to finger through the book with Nefertina.

And Nefertina couldn't help but tease Sohkarra a little. "You wait till I tell JaKal what you're looking at." She quipped.

Sohkarra gave her a sharp look. "JaKal always says we should learn all we can about this time." She countered. "And so that is what I'm doing....learning."

Nefertina grinned at her as she caught the double meaning. Even though she knew that nothing had happened in this respect between her Princess and her guardian. "Right…….." she couldn't help but joke to her friend. And was not daunted by the look that Sohkarra again gave her.

Not that she or he would advertise it if it had. But their relationship was still new. But she had a feeling that if Sohkarra learned all she wished, that could all change. For her blush of life spell enabled them to look and act as if they were actually alive.

Marianne saw Nefertina's look at her friend. "You too may want to look closely."

And at Nef's curious look, continued, "For my brother told me he would like to see you again when he gets back from this field expedition he went on. He should be back very soon."

And Nefertina couldn't help the slow grin that crossed her face as she remembered their night at the beach. And she wouldn't mind seeing him again either!

Sohkarra caught the look and gave her friend a cheeky grin and started batting her eyelashes. And the two of them shared an old secret that went back hundred of years. And then all too soon, it was time for the friends to depart for the sphinx which was their home. They bade their friend goodbye as they made their way back. And Sohkarra made Nefertina promise not to tell JaKal what they had learned this day. She wanted to let him know about it in her own way; in her own time. And Nefertina agreed. For she would also keep her own counsel about what she had learned.

**********************************************************************

Later that night, after everyone else had retired, or gone out for the evening, Sohkarra and JaKal were spending some time together alone. This was the first time they had such a chance since before the trouble with her powers. And Presley had been escorted home by Nefertina and Armon, who were going to head out for some dancing.

"And how was your outing with Marianne today?" asked JaKal of his Princess.

She looked up at him with a strange look in her sapphire eyes. "I learned much today." She answered a little evasively.

"What do you mean?" he asked. He noted the hesitancy in the way she answered.

"I saw some things today that I never dreamed of." She answered. "Of human relations."

He looked at her questioningly. "What would you learn of that?" he asked. For having been married himself with a child in the past, he knew something of it. But Sohkarra as far as he knew, had never experienced this sort of thing herself. But he did know that she had helped in several birthings, including that of his own beloved son.

"They do things much differently in this new time than in our time." She answered as best she could. "I saw the most amazing things in a book Marianne showed me."

"Marianne!" JaKal wanted to know. "Why would she speak to you of such things?" he was surprised, for he knew the two women spoke of many things, but this?

"Yes, Marianne." Sohkarra said. She looked at JaKal and noted his expression. And figured she'd better defend her friend. "I asked her some questions about something I read about, and she showed me some material to answer my queries. That is all. After all, she is a scientist."

JaKal noticeably relaxed. "If that is all.."

"Yes, that is all." Sohkarra answered him. She was a little vexed that he would take it in such a way. "What bothers you about that?"

And then JaKal took her into his arms and pulled her close. And looking into her eyes, answered, "There were certain things that I was hoping we would one day explore for ourselves." And he had such a sincere look on his face that she couldn't help but forgive him.

And she cuddled in closer and gave him a mischievous look. "Oh? What sort of things would you have us explore, JaKal?"

He looked down at her and caught her look. And proceeded to answer her question with a deep kiss. She almost purred with the contentment of it as they got so close they were almost one. She had used her spell on him, so he looked as she did, only in a masculine way. And she loved the feel of him in this way. But she loved him in whichever package he was in at the time; mummified or humanized.

And as they pulled apart ever so slightly, he said in a soft voice, "Does that answer your question my Princess?"

She looked as if she would contemplate his question. "Let me think." And then in a mischievous way, "No. I need more answers my Lord."

"I thought you might." He answered. And he proceeded to answer some of her 'questions'. Much to her delight.

And with this came the realization to both, that one day, all her unanswered queries would be answered. And not by any book.

THE END