Chapter Ten:

Gods and Demons

I woke up in the desert. I didn't remember exactly how I got there, but it soon came back to me. When I was knocked out, I was fading in and out of consciousness and felt my body being carried, and thrown into the sand. I groaned and spat some of the flying specks out of my mouth distastefully, then looked around. The Sphinx was nowhere to be found, and my throat was dry.

Instantly, I remembered. Lance, Kayce, Helen, Joanna, Dana and Violet were prisoners to Senator Kyle Grey, my father-in-law. I'd been brainwashed like Alec and Cole, but they were acting weird near the end. Did that mean that they somehow got free?

I got to my feet and covered my eyes as I started to walk. Whoever put me in the friggin' leather pants I was wearing now would definitely die!

My head hurt, and I quickly lost track of how long and how far I'd been walking. Everything looked the same! Even as a fire Conduit, the heat became too intense for me, and I eventually collapsed. When I came to, I was in a tent. The winds were blowing hard outside of it, but it kept the brunt of the sand out.

I forced myself to my feet and noticed that it wasn't so hard to move anymore. I was wearing loose-fitting green-and-gold pants that had a green sash around my waist and two other sashes that tied around each leg about halfway down my knee to my foot, with white bandages and brown sandals, and a faded red shirt that had its shoulders missing, and the sleeves were just barely hanging on by the rest of the shirt. Hey, at least it was better than leather, even if it didn't cover my damn belly-button…

"You have awakened."

I turned to the voice and saw an old Egyptian woman wearing a loose white dress. She carried in her hands a red and blue scarf that looked like it'd been sown together, and my nodachi.

"Good. You were sleeping for only a few hours, however. I imagine you are still very tired," she said, and then placed the scarf and my nodachi on her small table. "Please, sit." She gestured to a chair at the table. I couldn't find anything about this woman that was hostile, so I relaxed and sat across from her.

"Where am I?" I asked. "Who're you?"

"I am Ramla, and this is the desert of Egypt. And you are Joan Grey, formerly MacGrath." She smiled. "I have heard of you, young one."

I arched an eyebrow. "How…?"

"I would say that word gets around, but that would be lying. I… let's just say that I have seen you."

"Since you know my name, you must know what I'm looking for."

She nodded, everything about her aura… just knowing. "You are searching for your family." She pushed the scarf and my nodachi towards me. "I am sorry, but I can only take you so far. Once they entered the Sphinx, they headed further into the Underworld, where the god Anubis has safeguarded them in the darkness. This man… this Senator…he wishes to use the Gods to rule all."

"I know," I told her. "Like all bad guys." Can't they aim for something smaller first? "Only I helped him get here and capture others… like me."

"A person with special powers." Ramla touched my shoulder. I hadn't even noticed that she'd stood up, let alone come to stand beside me. "To make up for not being too helpful, I wish to part with the knowledge that was once entrusted to me."

I looked at her curiously. "What knowledge?"

"I know the many traps that you will face in the Underworld," she admitted, her eyes downcast. "The Gods designed it so only the worthy would speak with them. Once the Egyptian people rebelled against them, they could not be too careful."

"Really?"

Ramla nodded. "Once you enter the gates, there will be a single poisoned arrow shot at you. You will be so focused on the walls that you will not notice the tiny string that, when activated, will open a hole and suck you in."

"Already experienced that actually," I said.

She smiled. "Then you have done well." She sat across from me again and continued. "Passing through the next set of gates will trigger a fire trap. If you don't move fast, you will be burned alive, and the sands will take you. Next, there will be a chamber that pits you against your worst fear. You cannot escape it, and you must face it and learn to accept it. If you cannot, your very soul shall be stolen, but you will come out stronger for it. The last chamber before you arrive where the Gods are will test your morality, and what you would do in a certain situation. But be warned; the obvious answer is not always the right one."

I nodded, memorizing what she said. "And what about the chamber with the Gods?"

"I do not know," she answered honestly. "No one has ever gotten that far."

"That's reassuring." I stood up. "Thank-you. I'm sure your information will be invaluable."

The woman slowly got to her feet and motioned to the table. "Take these with you. The scarf will protect you from the sands, and I believe that the weapon belongs to you."

I picked up the scarf and tied it around my forehead. It made my hair stick out oddly at places I hadn't covered, but it was comfortable. I slid the nodachi onto my back and shook her hand.

"Thank-you again, Ramla," I said. "How can I ever repay you?"

"You need not," she assured me. "I know what it is to be a mother. I know what you are willing to face to get your family back."

I exited the tent and brought the remainder of the scarf around my face, leaving only my eyes uncovered, and walked on. It wasn't long before I saw the Sphinx, though I didn't understand how I could've been so near…

I entered the Sphinx and made my way to the open wall that lead to where I'd been knocked out. I ran through it and into the next gates. The fire I could handle easily; it didn't even burn my clothes! I momentarily wondered what Ramla had made me wear, and if she somehow knew that it'd burn if I used my powers.

But I didn't tell her about them, I thought automatically. Just who was that old woman?