Chapter 8
Death
Why do I even keep writing these disclaimers? By now you all KNOW I don't own The Mummy.
Haha! This chapter will be fantastic! It will be the best chapter I've ever written!
Or not.
Maybe.
I hope.
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Jonathon slammed on the brakes when they reached the entrance to the Valley. The three companions jumped out of the car. Ardeth rushed to the trunk and pulled out four pistol holders. Evelyn slipped them on quickly, loading them with the guns Ardeth handed her, and filling her hands with two more pistols.
Jonathon grabbed another four pistols and a rifle, while Ardeth armed himself to the teeth with pistols, rifles, and shot guns. He cocked his shot gun, and the three started into the Valley without a word.
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Rick alternated between curses and prayers as he, Rasheed, and Nekonkh wandered through the tomb. The darkness that surrounded them just outside the reach of Rasheed's torch was almost tangible. Rick could feel evil in the suffocating blackness, and that, added to the growing apprehensiveness in his gut, didn't make him feel any more confident about his situation.
His instincts told him to do something, and his mind raced, trying to figure out some way to get himself and Rasheed out of the tomb. Desperate, he simply stopped walking. Nekonkh pushed him, and he fell to his knees. Rasheed turned around at the noise.
"Come now, Mr. O'Connell. That is useless. We will simply kill you if you resist. All we need is your arm, not your life, to succeed."
Rick scrambled to his feet. He knew that death was not an option: that he could do nothing to stop Rasheed if he was dead. So he stumbled on into oblivion.
----------
It was easy to bring down the men Rasheed had set to guard the entrance to the tomb. A bullet was lodged firmly in the chest of each of the six men when Evelyn, Jonathon, and Ardeth headed down into the darkness.
It was black and cold and terrifying. There were no ancient mirrors, no torches, no lanterns. Nothing. Just darkness. Darkness that reeked of evil. Evelyn would have turned right around had she not felt Rick's presence, pulling her onward into the depths of the earth, where dead pharaohs lie, waiting quietly, peacefully, for the world to end.
----------
Rick's heart beat faster and faster as they went deeper into the labyrinth that was the tomb. He could feel it pounding in his ears. But he kept his wits about him, his mind straining to find a way out. There wasn't one. The world would end. Alone, he could not stop it.
The passage they were in came to a sudden halt. The wall sealing it off was covered in Ancient Egyptian writing that Rick couldn't decipher. Rasheed looked it over for a bit, grabbed Rick's wrist, glanced at it, and then gave a shout of triumph.
"Aha! This is it! The entrance to the Ritual Site." Rasheed's words sent a shiver down Rick's spine. Rasheed began to chant in Egyptian. Rick vaguely understood the words for 'darkness' and 'death,' and that certainly didn't make him feel any better about his predicament.
Slowly, the wall started to slide away with a loud scraping. Rick smelt stale air, and the rancid stench of death incarnate. Rasheed smiled and started to enter. Rick's heart almost stopped beating. Throwing caution to the winds, Rick threw himself into Rasheed, knocking him into the wall.
Nekonkh grabbed Rick's collar, pulling him back as he hit Rick sharply on the back of the head with the handle of his sword. Rick stumbled, but the adrenaline pumping in his veins could not be stopped. He spun, grabbing Nekonkh's sword arm with his left hand and grabbing the weapon with his right.
The two men struggled for a minute, but Rick's strength and determination won out. Rick stabbed Nekonkh in the stomach the same moment shots rang out in the blackness of the tomb. As Nekonkh fell, Rick saw over his head three figures, surrounded in the blackness. He brandished the blade angrily. Then-
"Richard O'Connell! Don't you dare point that at me, after I came all the way here to save your sorry ass! "
His sword arm dropped and he stared in amazement. "Evelyn?"
She stepped from the darkness, and he threw his arms around her, mindful of the sword he held. She wrapped her own arms around him and buried her face in his shoulder.
"Don't you ever scare me like that again," she whispered brokenly. He nodded silently.
"O'Connell!" shouted a heavily accented Arabian voice. "Rasheed!"
Rick released Evelyn and spun around. Rasheed had risen from the wall, and was sprinting toward a pedestal in the room of darkness. On top of it, something black, slimy, and strangely alive writhed. Rick spun around again, pulling a gun from one of the holsters on Evelyn's body.
He turned around once more, and took aim carefully. He would only get one shot. . . Rasheed was almost there. . . the black thing was moving with more strength now. . . Rick cocked the gun. . . and pulled the trigger.
BANG!
The shot's sound reverberated in the closed tomb's walls.
Rasheed stopped and turned toward Rick. He coughed blood, stumbled, and fell to the ground. The black thing stopped moving suddenly, condensing into a hard stone. Rick walked slowly into the Ritual Site. He stopped before Rasheed's body and looked down in disgust. The dark man looked up at him, still alive.
Rick knelt, leaning his face close to Rasheed's. "Anubis is waiting, Rasheed. It's over."
Rasheed smiled his cold smile one last time. "Haven't you heard, Mr. O'Connell? Death. . . is only the beginning." Rasheed closed his eyes, a smile fixed upon his face in death.
Rick rose, turned, and walked away from the Ritual Site. The door slit shut behind him. He wrapped one arm around Evelyn's waist, and smiled at Ardeth and Jonathon as he passed them, making his way back to the surface, leaving Death frozen behind a wall in the darkness of the earth.
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Short, I know. But I thought it was good. It was fun to write, at least.
Death
Why do I even keep writing these disclaimers? By now you all KNOW I don't own The Mummy.
Haha! This chapter will be fantastic! It will be the best chapter I've ever written!
Or not.
Maybe.
I hope.
----------
Jonathon slammed on the brakes when they reached the entrance to the Valley. The three companions jumped out of the car. Ardeth rushed to the trunk and pulled out four pistol holders. Evelyn slipped them on quickly, loading them with the guns Ardeth handed her, and filling her hands with two more pistols.
Jonathon grabbed another four pistols and a rifle, while Ardeth armed himself to the teeth with pistols, rifles, and shot guns. He cocked his shot gun, and the three started into the Valley without a word.
----------
Rick alternated between curses and prayers as he, Rasheed, and Nekonkh wandered through the tomb. The darkness that surrounded them just outside the reach of Rasheed's torch was almost tangible. Rick could feel evil in the suffocating blackness, and that, added to the growing apprehensiveness in his gut, didn't make him feel any more confident about his situation.
His instincts told him to do something, and his mind raced, trying to figure out some way to get himself and Rasheed out of the tomb. Desperate, he simply stopped walking. Nekonkh pushed him, and he fell to his knees. Rasheed turned around at the noise.
"Come now, Mr. O'Connell. That is useless. We will simply kill you if you resist. All we need is your arm, not your life, to succeed."
Rick scrambled to his feet. He knew that death was not an option: that he could do nothing to stop Rasheed if he was dead. So he stumbled on into oblivion.
----------
It was easy to bring down the men Rasheed had set to guard the entrance to the tomb. A bullet was lodged firmly in the chest of each of the six men when Evelyn, Jonathon, and Ardeth headed down into the darkness.
It was black and cold and terrifying. There were no ancient mirrors, no torches, no lanterns. Nothing. Just darkness. Darkness that reeked of evil. Evelyn would have turned right around had she not felt Rick's presence, pulling her onward into the depths of the earth, where dead pharaohs lie, waiting quietly, peacefully, for the world to end.
----------
Rick's heart beat faster and faster as they went deeper into the labyrinth that was the tomb. He could feel it pounding in his ears. But he kept his wits about him, his mind straining to find a way out. There wasn't one. The world would end. Alone, he could not stop it.
The passage they were in came to a sudden halt. The wall sealing it off was covered in Ancient Egyptian writing that Rick couldn't decipher. Rasheed looked it over for a bit, grabbed Rick's wrist, glanced at it, and then gave a shout of triumph.
"Aha! This is it! The entrance to the Ritual Site." Rasheed's words sent a shiver down Rick's spine. Rasheed began to chant in Egyptian. Rick vaguely understood the words for 'darkness' and 'death,' and that certainly didn't make him feel any better about his predicament.
Slowly, the wall started to slide away with a loud scraping. Rick smelt stale air, and the rancid stench of death incarnate. Rasheed smiled and started to enter. Rick's heart almost stopped beating. Throwing caution to the winds, Rick threw himself into Rasheed, knocking him into the wall.
Nekonkh grabbed Rick's collar, pulling him back as he hit Rick sharply on the back of the head with the handle of his sword. Rick stumbled, but the adrenaline pumping in his veins could not be stopped. He spun, grabbing Nekonkh's sword arm with his left hand and grabbing the weapon with his right.
The two men struggled for a minute, but Rick's strength and determination won out. Rick stabbed Nekonkh in the stomach the same moment shots rang out in the blackness of the tomb. As Nekonkh fell, Rick saw over his head three figures, surrounded in the blackness. He brandished the blade angrily. Then-
"Richard O'Connell! Don't you dare point that at me, after I came all the way here to save your sorry ass! "
His sword arm dropped and he stared in amazement. "Evelyn?"
She stepped from the darkness, and he threw his arms around her, mindful of the sword he held. She wrapped her own arms around him and buried her face in his shoulder.
"Don't you ever scare me like that again," she whispered brokenly. He nodded silently.
"O'Connell!" shouted a heavily accented Arabian voice. "Rasheed!"
Rick released Evelyn and spun around. Rasheed had risen from the wall, and was sprinting toward a pedestal in the room of darkness. On top of it, something black, slimy, and strangely alive writhed. Rick spun around again, pulling a gun from one of the holsters on Evelyn's body.
He turned around once more, and took aim carefully. He would only get one shot. . . Rasheed was almost there. . . the black thing was moving with more strength now. . . Rick cocked the gun. . . and pulled the trigger.
BANG!
The shot's sound reverberated in the closed tomb's walls.
Rasheed stopped and turned toward Rick. He coughed blood, stumbled, and fell to the ground. The black thing stopped moving suddenly, condensing into a hard stone. Rick walked slowly into the Ritual Site. He stopped before Rasheed's body and looked down in disgust. The dark man looked up at him, still alive.
Rick knelt, leaning his face close to Rasheed's. "Anubis is waiting, Rasheed. It's over."
Rasheed smiled his cold smile one last time. "Haven't you heard, Mr. O'Connell? Death. . . is only the beginning." Rasheed closed his eyes, a smile fixed upon his face in death.
Rick rose, turned, and walked away from the Ritual Site. The door slit shut behind him. He wrapped one arm around Evelyn's waist, and smiled at Ardeth and Jonathon as he passed them, making his way back to the surface, leaving Death frozen behind a wall in the darkness of the earth.
----------
Short, I know. But I thought it was good. It was fun to write, at least.