Evie and Rick looked at each other in amazement. They watched her before deciding to leave the two alone.
'How could she know this?' they both thought at the same time.
Catlanda walked up to Ardeth and they went out the door. She took his hand and he opened his eyes slightly, staring at her.
"Catlanda," he barely managed to say. "Are you...hurt?"
"No, I am not. I escaped injury completely. How do you feel?" she replied.
"Could be better. I am unsure what I feel like at the moment," he quietly replied as he held out his good hand.
She took it as he moved his legs, groaning in pain.
"Shh. Don't move. You were injured pretty badly Dad," she told him with a quiet voice as she placed a comforting hand on his stomach.
Ardeth ceased moving and stared at the IV going into his arm. Water was dripping into the tube and he watched it go into his body.
"I feel so helpless and this...mission...seems impossible to accomplish. I have never been this close to defeat and death before except for the time myself and the other Medjai were fighting the Army of Anubis," he quietly told her.
"But the O'Connells defeated the Scorpion King and the army disappeared back into the sands. I can't say the same about this battle. The Time Traveller has already managed to take you and the other two men down. You are all injured. We are now fighting a losing battle and there is nothing else we can do. He will be back one more time to defeat you three, all of us, for good and he will come swiftly," Catlanda told him. "And I might be the first to go after you three are struck down since I am with child."
Ardeth nodded his head after he closed his eyes. He really hated what she told him. He fell back alseep.
00000
Nick opened his eyes slightly and saw Sarah and Patrick standing next to the bed. He gave a faint smile as he stared at them.
"Sarah, Patrick," he said, sounding a bit groggy.
"Don't try to talk. Many of your ribs are cracked," Patrick told him as he put a hand on his shoulder.
He half-wondered if Nick even understood him since he was pumped full of something. Nick soon closed his eyes and fell back asleep. The brother and sister wondered what was going to happen to him as they sat by his bedside, worried about the future.
Frank gasped awake, startled. His eyes looked around the room to see Michelle, in a chair next to the bed, half-asleep. She raised her head and looked at him with a wornout look on his face, something he never saw in her.
"Frank, you're awake. How're you doing?," she tiredly said as she rubbed her eyes.
"I'm fine. How are Nick and Ardeth doing?" he quietly asked her as she took his hand.
"Not good," she told him with a shake of her head. "Both were knocked unconscious and both have recaived some serious injuries. Nick was beaten with a bat and received a a tranquilizer dart as a present. Ardeth was beaten and stabbed. He got punched, kicked and kneed," Michelle told him.
Frank gave a small gasp as he tried to move his broken wrist over his eyes. Michelle knew he had a feeling of helplessness right now since he didn't have the situation under control. She knew that Frank was used to having a situation under control.
"Nobody knows what exactly is going to happen. They're already looking at the grim possibility that the world as we know it will be destroyed," Michelle sadly told him.
It almost appeared as if she were going to cry. Frank thought he could see the tears in her eyes.
"Come here," Frank told her in a calm voice, motioning her over to him.
She walked over to him and gave him a hug as best as she could. He put his broken arm around her as she did so. He could hear her crying into his shoulder and it broke his heart.
00000
The Guardian stood in front of the altar, looking at the portal in front of her. She gasped as she looked around frantically as an evil seemed to surround her. Jonathan and Alex were sitting in a nearby corner, watching her. Jonathan was obviously scared as he hung on Alex, who was scared himself.
"The Time Traveller. He's making his move soon. I cannot wait any longer. They have to go now," she said to herself as she raised her hand.
A flash of light went out across the land of Egypt.
00000
Harriet, Jules and Letty were quietly talking as they passed Ardeth's room. Jules glanced inside to see a pulsing light coming from inside. She stopped, causing the others to do as well.
"What's wrong Jules?" asked Letty.
She didn't asnwer as she quietly walked inside the room. Catlanda was sleeping soundly in the chair next to Ardeth when the walked into the room. The Spire hung loosely in her hand and the eyes were steadily making the light. Harriet placed a hand on Catlanda's shoulder and she awoke, a bit confused.
"Catlanda, what is going on with the Spire?" she asked, pointing at it.
They both looked at it and Catlanda gasped as she held onto it more firmly. She stared at it in disbelief.
"No, it can't be!" she protested. "It can't be this soon!"
"Yes, it is. He will soon be here and you need the others," was all the Spire had said.
Catlanda softly groaned as she placed her head in her hand. The three doctors were slightly surprised.
"What's wrong?" asked Letty.
"The others from my time are on their way here as we speak. They need to be brought here immediately," she said as she tried to stand up.
The doctors were a bit surprised with this before they leapt to her side and keep her sitting.
"Don't exert yourself now. Tell us and we'll go find them," Jules told her.
"But...not everyone can control the Spire, which you'll need to find them," Catlanda quietly protested.
It was then that Sarah passed by the room. She looked inside and saw them. Harriet glanced to see her and motioned her inside.
"Will you trust someone with long enough until we do find them?" wondered Harriet.
Catlanda sighed and nodded.
"I can do that," she quietly replied.
Harriet turned toward Sarah.
"We have a small problem that we need your help with. Others from their time are coming and we need to go find them. Would you like to help?" Harriet explained.
"What do I have to do?" replied the teenager.
00000
A figure found himself in the park. He looked up to the sky before standing up.
"What the heck happened?" he demanded.
It was then that he decided to look at his surroundings and he gasped.
"Where am I?" he asked as he looked at the lights among the city. "Even better, when?"
He began to move forward, wondering where he was.
00000
Sarah and Michelle were leading the way as a small group walked out of the hospital. With the two, were Jake, Alex, Patrick, Rick and Matt while the others stayed at the hospital.
"So where are we going again?" wondered Matt.
"People from the same time as Rick and the others are coming. We have to go find them. Catlanda would have come herself if it wasn't for her delicate condition," replied Sarah as they hurried on.
"Where do we start?" asked Alex.
"Spire, where are they?" Sarah asked and the eyes glowed.
A map appeared before them and four blinking lights appeared on it.
"Alright. We know where we have to go," Jake said as they began to move.
"Jake, I have a quicker idea. Spire, tranpsort us to these locations," Sarah said.
"It is done," the Spire said as its eyes glowed.
The next thing Jake knew, he was near the Golden Gate Bridge. He looked around to see noone was nearby. He readied his gun as he begn to walk around.
Out of nowhere, came a figure wearing black clothes. He was carrying a sword and yelling out in a language Jake didn't understand.
"What the...?" Jake started as he kept his gun ready.
The man stared at him as both he and Jake stood ready.
"I don't want to hurt you mister. I just have to find someone and I'm thinking it's you," Jake told him.
"Me? Why would you be looking for me?" replied the man.
"Because if you suddenly showed up here, then yeah, I am looking for you. I'm a friend of Ardeth and Catlanda," Jake said.
The man lowered his sword and walked over to Jake, who put his gun away.
"My name is Marok, brother to the second-in-command of Ardeth. Catlanda is my age and with child. Did she have the baby yet?" he asked.
"No, she didn't yet. I fear she could at anytime now," Jake replied as they walked away.
Alex and Matt found themselves at another part of town. They began to walk around, looking among the people, seeing if she could find who she was looking for.
"There are so many people here, who could it be?" she murmered to Matt before they stared across the street.
"I agree totally," he told her.
There, they saw two older woman wearing strangly familiar clothing. Several young men were silently walking up behind them. Alex decided to cross the road and apporach them. Matt followed her as she faced the men.
"Hey ladies, are you new in town?" one asked them, laughing.
The two looked at them before glancing at each other and talking in Arabic.
"Stop talking Greek here and answer us!" demanded another one of the men.
The group steadily walked towards the women as Alex stepped up.
"Hello boys. Can I help you tonight?" she asked them, crossing her arms.
"Who're you? A cop?" snickered one.
"In a sense, I am. Federal Agent," she replied as she showed them her badge.
"Ooh, we're scared. One Federal Agent against all of us," one laughed.
Out of nowhere, one of them was pinned to the wall. The man was surprised to see one of the older women had done it.
"Leave her alone or else be killed," she quietly told him.
He gulped before he carefully moved away from her.
"I think you'd better leave. Some of my friends are on their way here and they are not as nice as I am," Alex said with a smile.
The men all snickered but that was before the saw all the officers running up behind them. They turned and ran. Alex smiled as she turned around to see the men run right through them.
"Must be the Spire making those," she mused.
The women gasped as Matt walked onto the scene.
"The Spire? Where is it? Where is Catlanda?" one asked.
"We know where she is. Mind if I ask you your names?" Matt replied.
"I am Ayanna and this is Iscantil. We are Catlanda's grandmothers and I am Ardeth's mother," one replied.
Alex's eyes opened as she looked at Matt, who stared back.
"Come on. Let's go," Matt told them before they began to walk down the street.
00000
Rick and Patrick found themselves not far from the hospital. They walked around, looking for whoever was there.
"Who are we supposed to look for anyway?" asked Patrick.
"Could be any of six people that I can think of," replied Rick. "Well, there's Catty's grandmothers, Sharak, Marok, Jonathan and Alex."
"Another Alex? How does he know Catlanda?" wondered Patrick.
"He knows her through Evie and myself. He's our son and Jonathan is Evie's brother. Sharak is Ardeth's second and Marok is his brother and around Catty's age," Rick explained.
They walked around and corner and bumped into someone.
"Hey watch where you're going!" Rick cried.
"Watch where you're go...Rick?" came a familar voice.
"Jonathan?" Rick said.
"Dad!" came Alex's voice.
Rick felt two arms around him and he sighed as he hugged his son.
"Alex, I am so glad you're alright," Rick said.
Patrick and Jonathan shook hands.
"You must be Jonathan. Don't worry, explanations and introductons will be later," Patrick reassured him.
Jonathan nodded, trusting what the young man had to say.
00000
Sarah and Michelle walked around the park.
"Should we even be out here alone? Some guys might see us as easy targets," Sarah wondered.
"I'm not that easy to take down. I've practically lived on the streets for two years and I'm not one to mess around with," Michelle told her as they looked around.
"Maybe in Chicago they know not to mess with you but they don't here in San Fransisco," Sarah told her.
They suddenly something behind them. They stopped and turned around.
"What was that?" asked Sarah, sounding nervous.
"I don't know," replied Michelle.
A figure ran out at them, wielding a sword. Sarah instinctively held out the Spire and the eyes glowed.
"Sharak, stop! These teens are our friends!" it cried.
The man did so and stared at it, nodding.
"Sarah, I don't think he'll hurt us. Now I think we'd better get back to the hospital," Michelle said as she walked up to the Medjai.
"Hi Sharak, I'm Michelle, she's Sarah. Come with us and everything will be explained," she told him.
Monica sat by Frank's bed before he put a hand over his shoulder and gasped. Monica hurried over to his side.
"Frank, what's wrong?" she asked.
He gritted his teeth as he breathed deeply.
"Nothing," he replied as he placed his head back on the pillow.
"Yeah right. It must be the Time Traveller. He must be causing this. It's the only explanation and you're too proud to admit anything," Monica said with a sigh.
Nick was sleeping in a painful sleep as Rae stayed by his side, stroking his hair.
"Why does it have to be like this Nick? Just imagine, you see these two kids who have no idea where to go, you take them in and because you do, you will probably will die because of it," she said.
Suddenly, Nick was having some trouble breathing. His eyes opened wide in fear and he stared at her.
"Chest hurts," he managed to gasp.
Rae was surprised at this before going for some help.
Catlanda headed out into the hallway to be greeted by Cody. He headed towards her.
"Hey Cat, how're you doing?" he asked as a wince appeared on his face.
"I am fine. Are you doing well?" she replied. "I am worried about what is to happen. We have never had to worry about the Time Traveller and we are not sure how to stop him," Catlanda replied as a hand went to her stomach.
Cody put his good hand on her shoulder and smiled.
"I think when the time comes, we'll know what to do," he told her.
A smile apread across her face as Jules and Jackie came down the hall to greet them. But their greeting was interrupted when a groan came from Ardeth. Catlanda hurried inside as fast as she could to see that he was breathing heavily.
"Dad, what is wrong?" she asked him, sounding really scared.
"Shoulder hurts. So does leg and...and...," he replied as put a hand over his shoulder wound.
His daughter knew what he meant. Catlanda looked up at the window and turned around to see Ayanna standing at the door. She hurried over to her son in a state of shock. She held his hand.
"Everyone is here! The Traveller will be here soon for certain and kill us all!" Catlanda cried as her eyes widened.
TBC...