Shelby (pen name Eviefan) March 1, 2003
After a long day of travel in the hot desert sun, the weary group of travelers made camp along side the Nile. After the tents were set up and a fire was built, Evelyn ushered her brother into one of them to have him get some rest, worried that the sun and the stress of trying to find Skarzinski had gotten the best of him.
While Evelyn took care of her brother, Rick, Ardeth, and Izzy whose Dirigible they had to leave behind at the Oasis due to a hole in the main lining of the canvas balloon, talked about where they wanted to go tomorrow. It had been shear luck and nothing more that the group had found camels herding close to the oasis, or else they would have been doing all their travel by foot.
With the men talking about tomorrow's travel, Kit had found a spot by the Nile to sit and relax and think about his own plans. These people were already becoming too attached to him, and he didn't like that. He was alone now and alone was how it was going to stay. From the pack on the back of his Camel, Kit now had a pack of cigarettes. He lit one then put it in his mouth, drinking in the smoke. He shut his eyes as he puffed it out, and was starting to relax when a small voice said, "What's that like," Kit opened his eyes to find Alex standing in front of him.
Whether it was because he didn't want to describe to Alex what it was like to smoke a cigarette, or because he wanted to make Rick angry with him, Kit pulled one out of the shiny package, and held it up for Alex to take. "Take a smoke and find out," he said.
Alex took the cigarette in his hand, looking around. He wasn't sure about smoking, and was about to say 'no', when Kit's comment changed his mind.
"You going to let them scare you away from trying something new?"
Alex imitated how Kit held the Cigarette then let him light it. He put it in his mouth, took a quick suck and blew it out. "This isn't that bad," Alex said, trying not to gag at the horrible taste the smoke left in his mouth. He sat down next to Kit, hoping maybe this meant they were friends.
Kit chuckled. "You're wasting a perfectly good cigarette doing it that way. You want to inhale it into your body, that's the way it relaxes you."
Alex drew in another mouthful of smoke and then inhaled. Promptly he choked and instantly dropped the cigarette. He felt his face redden as Kit started to laugh, then felt his blood go cold when he felt a strong hand on his shoulder.
Finding it too quiet around the fire, Rick realized that Kit and Alex were no where to be found. He made a quick check in their tents then decided to have a look by the Nile. Finding his thirteen year old son with a cigarette in his hands was not something Rick was all that happy to see. "You go back to your tent. The only place smoke will be coming out is your butt when I get done with it," Rick said as he shoved Alex in the direction of the camp. Once he was gone his eyes locked on Kit. "I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't smoke those while you are around my son," Rick said, trying to maintain his anger.
"Well I'd appreciate going on my merry way, but we all can't get what we want now can we?" Kit asked as he put another cigarette in his mouth and lit the end of it.
Rick glared at him. "Look we can either get along or I'll make your life with us for the duration of this trip a living hell," he said as his voice began to rise.
Calmly Kit blew the smoke out of his mouth. "Too late, you already did that. All I got to relax me is my pack of cigarettes. Here have one it may help you relax," Kit said holding one out, knowing he was making Rick even more angry, but not seeming to really care.
Instead of taking the cigarette Kit was offering Rick took the pack and threw them in the Nile, and got a reaction from his young nephew.
Kit jumped up from his seat by the Nile no longer relaxed. "God damn you. Do you know how much money that cost me?" he yelled. "I am not some kid like Alex. I'm Seventeen years old and man enough to make my own decisions. So if I want to smoke I can smoke. If I want to have a whole tent full of girls to fuck I can have that too. Go to hell and take your family with you, cause I don't need any of you." With that he took the pack of cigarettes and stomped away yelling "O'Connell."
Penny - March 1, 2003
"WHAT?" Rick snapped watching as Kit retreated.
"O'CONNELL?" Kit shouted again.
"I'M RIGHT HERE WHERE YOU LEFT ME, KIT!"
"O...CON...NELL!" he shouted to the heavens. Only it wasn't God or Allah who shouted back.
Rick growled, fed up at the lack of response his nephew was showing him. "WHAT IN THE HELL DO YOU WANT?"
Kit stopped, pivoted on a boot heel and glared at the man who kept shoving himself down Kit's throat at every opportunity. "IT SURE AS HELL AIN'T YOU, DUMB ASS!"
"DAMMIT! THEN WHY THE HELL DO YOU KEEP SHOUTIN' AT ME?"
"I AIN'T SHOUTIN' AT YOU STUPID! I'M CALLIN' MY DAMN CAMEL!"
Rick rolled his eyes, throwing up both hands. "You're a real piece of work you know that? My sister must have been real pleased to have you around." As soon as the sarcasm came rolling off his tongue, Rick wanted to bite it off. He saw the look flicker in Kit's eyes for just a second. As soon as it came, it was gone. "Kit I..."
"You know what I just figured out about YOUR mother, O'Connell, the best part of you ran down her leg." Kit turned and walked off, leaving Rick to stand there and stare at his retreating form.
Later that night after everyone was asleep, Kit reached into his back pack and pulled the flash light from his pack. He unscrewed the cap at the bottom and the heavy golden staff slipped from it's hiding place. It wasn't much more than a foot long and laden with carved hieroglyphs. He ran his fingers over each one taking in their appearance and feeling the rough texture. What bothered him, was each time he held it, it a little bit grew warmer in his hand.
Grandpare had told him there was a reason behind it. Then the old man started talking about the Chosen One and how he alone could destroy the Scepter of Seth. Ramblings of a scared old man, Kit thought and toward the end, Grandpare had been scared. No, terrified was more like it...always looking over his shoulder. Taking the long way home, when it would have taken them twenty-five to thirty minutes to drive it, they wound up getting there in a couple hours.
As the scepter grew warmer in his hands, again his Grandpare's words came back to haunt him. "Guard this with your very life Kit. If you don't your Mother and Father will have died in vain, just as the Carnahan's and countless other's have. Keep it close to you. You'll know when the time comes what to do, but you must be brave child. You must be brave and keep your wits about you. Remember the power is in your hands."
"Grandpare, how am I supposed to know what to do? Why couldn't you just tell me?" he whispered as he stared at it. Kit finally sighed, knowing he wouldn't get an answer and he slipped it back in it's hiding place in the flashlight and shoved it deep into his rucksack.
He fished out old Aswad's journal next. This should be interesting he thought, trying to decipher those hen scratches of that old man was gonna be a long painstaking pain in the ass, so when he opened the journal and read the name on the inside cover, his mouth fell open in shock. Adinah Carnahan. AW SHIT! HE HAD THE WRONG BOOK! WHERE WAS IT? DAMN! He chilled suddenly, as he looked at the first page. It was like some one had stepped on his grave and he had a feeling he should not read from the book.
Hollywood Heidi (pen name JasmineHR) March 1, 2003
He slammed the book shut and stared at the cover while arguing with himself. There were two reasons he shouldn't read it. First, it wasn't his to read, and second, he was pretty damn sure he wouldn't like what he would learn from it. Like his Aunt Evelyn, his curiosity overrode any feelings of caution. "Hell, it's only a damn book," he thought to himself. "Words never hurt no one."
He'd been using the small amount of fire light coming in through the open flap of his tent and would need better lighting now that he'd decided to have a close look at Adinah's journal. With the journal in one hand and the rucksack in the other, Kit quietly walked the short distance to the fire and sat beside it with his back towards the other tents. He opened the cover and read the two simple words on the first page; Journal One. He turned the page and began reading. It was a detailed description on the legend of Seth and his scepter. His Papere told him this story many times when he was younger, so there was no point in reading about it. He turned to the middle of the journal and began reading. This part told him where to find the scepter. He looked to his rucksack and gave a snort. Obviously, this part was already taken care of, so he turned to the last few pages of the journal and began reading.
The walls of the temple depicted two different scenes. One of a man holding the scepter with what appears to be a red glow coming from the top. Seth is standing in front of the man, offering him the symbol for eternal life; the ankh. The other, a man holding the same scepter, but with what appears to be a white glow coming out of the top. This man is being observed by many of the other Egyptian gods; Osiris, Isis, and Horus, just to name a few, but these gods do not interfere or offer temptations. According to hieroglyphs, there are three types of man. The highest number being the average man who has no power over the Scepter of Seth. Then there are the two types that do have the power over the scepter; those with the pure heart, and those with a heart of black. There are directions on how to determine which of the three categories someone would fall under. With the scepter held in both hands, one of the following must be said:
For the pure of heart:
My heart is pure and possesses no evil,
Show me the light in the color of white
For the heart of black:
A heart of black I do possess,
Show me the light in the color of red
After deciphering the new papyri scrolls that we have found on our most recent dig, I now know how to "activate" the scepter for both good and evil. This may seem as if it would be a simple step by step process, but Seth was no fool. As Seth intended, using it for evil would be a simple enough process, but to destroy the Scepter of Seth, you must first call forth the evil. Both ways begin with the same directions and the same chant. I am still working on translating the directions, but the chant, which I have written below, must not, under any circumstances be read aloud unless the person is ready to face the consequences.
Kit skimmed over the ancient foreign words, not even wanting to hear them in his head.
Once these words are read aloud, the sands will rise in a circular sandstorm locking in the one who has spoken these words and locking all others out. The heavens will part and a thunderbolt will strike the ground causing it to shake and split open as the power of Seth is unleashed. The person will have the great power of Seth at his disposal. It will take great courage, strength, and a strong will for the one with the pure heart to not allow themselves to be lured to the side of evil due to the incredible thrill of having the power of the universe at your disposal. In fact, it is Seth's hope that the pure hearted one will fail this test of strength.
He studied the page to the right, which had a sketch of the wall she spoke of. It looks as though she copied down every last hieroglyphic symbol and every detail of the wall. He turned to the next page; the last page to be exact, preparing to read the part about how to destroy the damn thing. Nothing. Blank. "What the hell?" he thought. "Just as I was getting into it. Those Egyptians really had a hell of an imagination. Hopefully one day I'll find the next journal and find out what happens next," he thought, wanting to convince himself that this all was a load of bullshit. But then, out of sheer curiosity, he reached inside his rucksack and pulled out the flashlight. He gave a quick look around, extracted the scepter, and looked at the two different chants. With the way he'd been acting lately and the way he'd been treating the O'Connells after they'd been trying to be nice, the big dumb ape O'Connell excluded, he figured he'd be more on the side of the not-so-pure, to put it a nice way.
After quickly memorizing the few words, he stood up and held the scepter out with two hands. He looked around once more only to make sure nobody saw him making an ass of himself. He cleared his throat and kept his voice low so he wouldn't wake the others. "A heart of black I do possess / Show me the light in the color of red." He held his breath as soon as he finished and waited. After a minute, he let out the breath and felt relieved, even though he told himself that he didn't believe any of this crap.
"Now this one is a no-brainer," he thought as he got ready to do the other chant. "Pure heart," he snorted, "If I ever meet someone with a pure heart, I'll kiss the big dumb ape full on the mouth."
He held the scepter out with both hands and in a silly voice laced with humor, he said, "My heart is pure and possesses no evil / Show me the light in the color of white."
The scepter shook lightly in his hands. His eyes widened and his jaw dropped as a bright beam of white light shot out of the top of the scepter and lit a never ending path up into the heavens. "Holy Hell!" He immediately let the scepter go and the beam of light disappeared. He looked down at the scepter, which now stood motionless in the sand. He heard some movement and immediately threw the scepter back into the flashlight and shoved the flashlight into the rucksack. He grabbed the still open journal by the back cover and practically threw himself back into his tent. He thought about what had just happened. The white light meant that he was the one with the pure heart who had to destroy the scepter. "Ah shit," he mumbled. He had to find that second journal so he would know what to do. "Shit." Then he remembered what he said he'd do if he ever came across a pure hearted person. He turned his face into his sleeping mat and punched the ground with a muffled "SHIT, SHIT, SHIT!" He dared not leave until morning and soon, fell into a fitful sleep. In his haste, he did not notice a folded piece of paper fall out from the pages of the journal. It now lay in the sand to the left of his tent.
Morning had come too soon, in Kit's opinion. He climbed out of his tent, eyes still practically closed, and stretched. He opened his eyes and saw Rick building up the fire again, most likely so breakfast could be made. "Well," Kit thought, "might as well get this over with, especially since no one else is around to see it."
Rick stood up. "It's about time you got up. Why don't you make yourself useful. Evie and Alex are packing up, Ardeth is getting our breakfast, and Jonathan, well, Jonathan's probably still sleeping."
Rick watched as Kit stomped over to him, hands fisted at his sides, mumbling the whole way. Rick looked at him with a funny confused expression wondering what the hell the loudmouth would say now. Instead, Kit took a deep breath, led it out, grabbed Rick's face, and gave him a loud smacking kiss right on the mouth.
"WHAT-" Rick began spitting, "THE HELL!" He began wiping his mouth on his sleeve and spitting some more.
At this point, Kit was practically on the ground laughing. The expression on the big ape's face was priceless. As soon as he stopped laughing so hard, he explained. "Let's just say I made a bet against myself and I lost, big time."
"The next time you make a goddamn bet, pick someone else to plant one on!" Rick yelled.
Just then, Evie came out of the tent and Kit looked at her, smiling and wiggling his eyebrows. "You know, your wife is pretty hot."
"She's your aunt for cryin' out loud!"
Kit was having too much fun baiting Rick. "Only by marriage, not by blood."
"You get anywhere near my wife, the next thing you'll be kissing is your own ass." Just then, Jonathan finally came wandering out of his tent. "You can kiss him all you want though," Rick said pointing his thumb over his shoulder at Jonathan. Kit snickered, then Rick snickered. Then they both started laughing.
"It's good to see you too getting along," Evie said as she walked by them. She gave Rick a quick kiss on the cheek and ruffled Kit's hair. She saw something in the sand by Kit's tent and bent to pick it up. She unfolded it and began to read.
My darling Jonathan and Evelyn,
She recognized her mum's handwriting immediately and began hyperventilating as she clutched the letter to her heart.
Marion (pen name GiantPygmyGirl) March 9, 2003
My darling Jonathan and Evelyn,
A man lead by the lust of power is not to be trusted. Alan Skarzinski is one of those men. I see it growing in him daily. His eyes become darker each time I look at him, their depths consumed with need. I don't really know how much time we have left I know this sounds horrible, and frightening, and I only can wish that my fears are unprecedented.. Your father has become quite concerned about Alan. His want to find the Scepter of Seth for himself is destroying him. At even the mention of the scepter or of anything resembling a gold rod his demeanor becomes almost demonic, his personality taking on a sadistic gleam. One thing is true children… If you ever find this tool, this weapon to mankind, you must find a way to destroy it… I only hope we aren't too late. I only hope we can be back with you soon, encircling you two in our arms and whispering of our adventures… How I long to be with the two of you, to see your smiling angelic faces. This dig has become too involved for me. Your father feels the very same way, and it's taking the energy out of the both of us…We just want so desperately to find the Scepter and to destroy it before Alan can lay his hands on it. Goodbye for now my children. Remember that if anything happens to me I love you more than life itself. Your father wants to say something,
Love,
Mum
Dearest Jonathan and Evelyn,
How are you two doing? Your mother and I miss you very much, and soon, tomorrow in fact, we will be seeing you again. We do not mean to scare you with this letter, we only hope that if there is some need to contact you, for any reason that you will know you are loved and cared for. I think that your mother covered pretty much all that we had wanted said. I have to make this fast, Alan's coming…Remember angels, we love you, soar high, and always contemplate…we know you will.
Love,
Daddy
Evelyn's hand went slowly up to her lips, because on the paper, preserved for approximately two decades were two pairs of lips. The letter literally had been sealed by a kiss. She recognized her mother's red lipstick on her father's thin lips, and her mother's fuller lips following suit beside his. A single tear slipped out of each eye, and slowly made its way down her cheeks. Her hand tightened its hold on her mouth as her eyes squeezed shut and a muffled sob came from her throat. Then, seemingly getting herself under control she thrust the letter into Jonathan's outstretched hands before she collapsed into Rick's arms.
Meanwhile Kit and Alex stood hopelessly off to the side, both awkward, not knowing what to do, or quite what had happened. It was in this moment that Kit realized he needed to help this family. And, he thought. I'm the only one who can.
A/N: Please review!