A/N. wow ok class, it would seem a disagreement has broken out on my review page. Id just like to take this opportunity to thank all you lovely people who have written in my defence. I really appreciate everything you guys have said, and I agree with it for the most part. As for my critic's well, I'll let my reviews answer you.

That said lets draw a line under this issue, with the fact that everybody has the right to hold their own opinions.

I do of course appreciate all my reviewers, and I love to hear from you guys.

So on we go..

Chapter Eleven.- No comfort.

Turning the wheel slowly Rick pulled the boat skilfully into a tiny harbour on the edge of the Nile where Ardeth was indicating. The dark night that had eventually fallen was penetrated only by the sharp rays of the moon that reflected off the still water and lighted the way. On the bank Rick could see their welcoming party.

A young man stood holding the reins of four horses. Imbedded in the sand in front of him was a dimly lit torch that had obviously been burning for some time. As he noted the young mans thin robes, Rick couldn't help but shiver; although it had been some time since his clothes had dried out, he could have sworn he could still feel the cold water dripping down his spine.

In the hours since his unexpected swim, Rick and Ardeth struggled with the stuck boat. They were lucky in that the hull hadn't been too badly damaged, and after much shifting of weight, and even another dip for O'Connell, the boat reluctantly returned to the deeper water it required to continue on its way.

Upon anchoring the intentionally still boat, Ardeth looked up to where Evelyn stood, trying to arrange their belongings into some kind of order. Slowly he crossed to her.

"Evelyn," he began softly, "I wish to offer my apologies, for raising my voice earlier."

Looking up, Evie was surprised by the sincerity in the man's eyes. "Raising your voice?" she repeated, confused.

"Yes," Ardeth agreed as he lowered his gaze. "When your husband was in the water, I am afraid I did not treat you with the respect you deserve."

Thinking back, Evelyn remembered his curse. "Think nothing of it," she replied with a smile. "Jonathan has said worse to me for waking him up in the morning."

Evelyn's light hearted acceptance did not lift Ardeth's burden- he did respect Evelyn and felt bad about treating her otherwise. "Even so…" he began.

"Please," she interrupted him, "I understand we all say things we don't mean in such situations, so please don't worry yourself."

Ardeth nodded, feeling a little better.

Crossing to the talking pair, Rick wrapped his arm protectively around Evelyn's waist.

"Why," he asked as he pointed at the boy on the shore, "do I get the impression he is waiting for us?"

Ardeth smiled as he followed Rick's gaze. "Perhaps, my friend, because he is."

XXX

The small group mounted their rides quickly after Ardeth and the waiting boy exchanged a few words of greeting. Their journey was relatively short, and they quickly arrived at their destination.

"We have arranged a camp for you," the young Medjai explained as they all dismounted.

Looking over the small camp, Ardeth smiled politely. "This will be more than sufficient. You have done well."

Obviously pleased by the higher man's praise, the young boy looked down, before he gathered the reins of the horses together. "If you wish, I will see to the animals now?" he asked, still not looking up.

Smiling, Ardeth nodded as he strode forward. Hot on his heels, Rick followed and joined him by the side of the already burning fire.

"Now correct me if I'm wrong," he began, " but something tells me we were expected."

Nodding once again, Ardeth looked up to met his questioning gaze. "When I learnt of our requirement here, I sent word ahead about when we should arrive."

Finally relinquishing her reins of the beautiful animal she had ridden to this spot, Evelyn quickly joined the men around the fire.

"There is a Medjai presence here?" she asked as more of a statement than a question.

"Of course," Ardeth replied, "I informed you of such earlier."

"Right, right," Rick nodded, "so why isn't there a bigger camp?"

"Oh there is," Ardeth nodded. "It is just-" he paused, wondering how to explain.

"We are not permitted to go there." Evelyn guessed correctly.

Rick looked up at her. "Excuse me?" he asked.

"Rick, our very knowledge of the existence of the Medjai is probably very loosely tolerated. In fact the only reason we are allowed this close is probably because of our past history. We therefore cannot just go waltzing into their camp."

Ardeth squirmed as Evelyn's words rang true, and he remembered the many fights he had had over the O'Connell's and how much they should be tolerated.

"Oh, ok," Rick mumbled as this fact sank in for the first time. After all their adventures together, it was all too easy to forget Ardeth's sacred life.

"O'Connell, perhaps now would be a good time for you to tell us of your earlier vision," Ardeth suggested as a way of easing the tension that seemed to lay on the camp.

After being dragged from the water, Rick had told of the fact that he had had a vision, but the condition of the boat demanded all of their immediate attention and therefore he had not elaborated.

Taking a deep breath Rick explained all. As he finished he noticed a confused look on the Medjai's face.

" Is something wrong?" Rick asked.

Ardeth nodded; the information did not tally with the knowledge he was party to.

"Doe this mean Menka was at Hamanaptra?" Evelyn asked in the ensuing silence as Ardeth failed to answer verbally.

"I know not," Ardeth answered unhappily, "perhaps we shall find out more tomorrow in Nefertiri's tomb."

After their heated encounter the night before, Rick longed to be alone with Evelyn. Moving closer to her he wrapped his arm around her shoulder, and felt her snuggle deep into his warmth. "are you ok?" he whispered.

Evelyn didn't answer she just snuggled deeper, she really didn't feel ok, she was thinking about Jonathan and she was worried about his safety. She desperately wanted Rick to make her feel better. Looking up suddenly she met his eyes with a deep gaze that conveyed everything.

At first Rick only saw a sadness in her eyes that he had seen far to many times before. Unsurprisingly to him however, he soon saw a hunger for comfort in a very physical way. Standing up quickly he yawned. "Perhaps," he suggested, "we should call it a night."

"Yes," Evelyn agreed finally finding her voice as the loss of warmth elevated her emotions. "we must rise early, so we really should retire."

"No," Ardeth said quietly, "I am afraid you cannot."

Rick looked at the seated man, and he could tell by the look on his face he wasn't going to like what was coming next. "And why not?"

"We should retire," Ardeth agreed, "but you can not be together," he continued.

Evelyn felt a rush of colour invade her checks as she jumped to the embarrassing assumption that Ardeth had guessed their plans.

"I don't think that's…" Rick began, as brash as ever.

"No man can lie with a woman, be they alive or dead," Ardeth cut him off quickly. "This valley is sacred and I must ask you to respect that."

Evelyn nodded as she realised what he meant. "The valley of the queens," she almost whispered. "Of course, the women were always buried separately, as a man and a woman can not enter the afterlife together."

"Well I'm not planning on entering any afterlife tonight, so I don't really see why it matters," Rick answered flippantly; he was not enamoured of this idea at all.

"I am sorry," Ardeth said as he too finally stood, "but that is the way it has been for centuries, and how it shall remain. No man shall lie with a woman in this valley."

"Rick," Evelyn soothed, stroking his arm as she saw his annoyance. "We must respect this."

"Oh, now we have to respect things!" Rick fumed. "It's ok for you to desecrate tombs and bring mummies back to life, but when I wana get a little sleep with my wife…" his tirade ran out as he heard his own lie.

"It's only one night," Evelyn continued sadly; she didn't like it anymore than Rick did, but she could see that it meant something to Ardeth. "It will be fine."

"And I must insist," Ardeth added loudly, before speaking a lot quieter, "especially as I cannot guarantee we are not being watched."

"In that case," Rick sighed as he looked around. "I guess I really don't have a choice."

XXX

After having climbed wearily to its highest point, the moon above now began its slow descent. Rick shifted uncomfortably on his blanketed bed; since retiring his eyes had not shut once. He just stared at the canvas above his head, and fantasised about what he'd rather be doing. Eventually he rolled onto his side and closed his eyes in a pretence of sleep, moments later however they snapped wide open as a loud noise penetrated his delicious thoughts.

Sitting up he looked around, confused, and as the noise came again slowly he turned to his right, following the sound.

Lying on his back with his eyes firmly shut, Ardeth snored loudly again.

Sighing as he realised the small chance that he had of getting some shut eye had just disappeared into the sand, Rick silently got to his feet and stole from the tent.

The cold air refreshed Rick as he strode across the sand, the fire had long died, although the embers shining brightly held his attention for a second, before they too got boring.

Deciding the only thing to do was attempt to walk off his frustration, Rick headed towards a small outcrop of rocks at the rim of the small basin which sheltered their camp from the harsh dessert wind. He decided to take a route which conveniently took him past the thin canvas wall of Evelyn's tent.

Rick's feet stopped him dead as he came within touching distance of the divider. There was a large part of him that desperately wanted to defy whatever god had passed the sacred law that forced him away from his wife's side. His sense of loyalty to not only his friend's but his wife's request was the only thing that stopped him from doing so.

Rick's job of resisting became considerably harder, however, as in the silent night his ears picked up on a gentle, but oh so familiar sound. Listening intently he held his breath until he heard it again, and it was not long before he was rewarded; a soft enchanting moan escaped from Evelyn's lips, and Rick's frustration went into overdrive as he ached to hold her in his arms. A place where he knew she would be safe.

Balling his hands into fists as the rhythmic noise came again, Rick forced himself away, for he knew if he were to stay he could not guarantee he would respect anything.

Stomping across the dessert, Rick finally reached his rock destination. Slowly he sat down and looked out across the rocky tombs that they were planning to explore after sunrise. His exasperation was so acute, however, that he could not keep focused. Looking down he pulled his knife from his pocket and slowly began digging in the sand absent-mindedly, desperately trying to keep his thoughts away from Evelyn, and the fact that he had been forced away from her.

Eventually his mind drifted to other things, and he began to realise how many of the cards his ancient brother actually held- including Jonathan. This train of thought did little to calm him- even less so when he realised how little choice he had had over everything so far, including the visions. They hadn't really bothered him so much until today, but the fact that they came when they liked was now a worry. Today he had been lucky and the consequences had not been worse, but what if next time they weren't so lucky, and something happened to Evelyn?

"Why cant I have a vision now? When I'm not doing something?" he asked angrily to no one in particular. A sudden rush of determination to regain some control flooded him, and he squeezed his eyes shut tight, willing the scene in front of him to change. After a second he cracked one eye open slowly. But as he realised nothing had changed the anger boiling inside him overflowed "Oh screw this!" he swore, standing up and turning to storm away.

He took one step towards the camp, when a sharp pain shot through his back, causing him to fall unwillingly to his knees. The initial sting he felt on his skin drove deeper and deeper, forcing him to gasp for breath. Reaching out, desperate for something to help him through an agony like none he had ever felt before, he found nothing but a handful of sand.

A/N. hmm, am I evil or am I evil? Lol.

Normal service will return with the next post, in regards to greeting reviewers.

Until next time, pp xxx