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Chapter 17 - Ardeth's struggle

By now Samir had probably figured out he hadn't sent any member of the tribe to accompany Elisabeth to Cairo. Ardeth couldn't really imagine what was going through his brother's mind, but he reckoned it was something along the lines of betrayal and anger. It would become a point of discussion once he returned to the Medjai. For now it would have to simply wait and linger in the back his head.

Ardeth's eyes moved away from the fire until they came at a stop on a lithe silhouette across from him. Though he couldn't see her face as her back was faced towards him, Elisabeth Borchardt was currently sleeping quietly. Every time her body stirred but a little, Ardeth looked up to see if she'd woken. So far she hadn't, which put him at ease.

Soon he'd have to wake her in order for them to continue their journey to Cairo. It would be a while before they'd stop again, therefore he let her have all the rest she could get. Though getting her to actually sleep had been a bit of a struggle. Their current location had caught her interest and she must have walked around the circular rock formation more than five times.

Ardeth had sat back and watched her as she touched the walls with her hands, as if she'd been trying to find something special. But these were just stones. A place where his people stayed for months during the second season as it was a good place to have shelter from the warm midsummer sun. After Elisabeth had realized she wasn't going to find anything as interesting as a burial site, she joined him again for another round of shai.

The Medjai chieftain was unsure how much more of the dark golden liquid his stomach could handle. But it was a welcome distraction to have whenever a quiet spell fell between them. And there had been some as he found it difficult to talk to her. Not because he didn't want to, but because there were a lot of questions on his mind. Things he couldn't ask without giving away a secret or two which he had kept from her.

One of them being that he had her traveling journal. The one containing a lot of written information on the American and the object which he'd stolen. There were also other topics, such as his younger brother Samir but also mentioning of his own name. The most important subject at the moment was of course the thief. But how was he going to discuss it with Elisabeth without revealing the fact that he had her journal?

Ardeth grabbed his sword and pocked it into the fire, causing a crackling sound to erupt from the flames. He tilted his head back and looked up at the sky. It was about time to leave. Best he got ready and clear the area before Elisabeth would wake up.

After about fifteen minutes, Ardeth finished packing up and saddled their horses. He made his way back to his previous spot and kicked sand over the small fire pit which Elisabeth had creating, extinguishing the tiny flames and embers within a matter of seconds. He walked over to the sleeping woman and crouched down next to her.

He took him a second to realize he'd been watching her longer than what was considered appropriate. Quickly he raised his arm and placed his hand on her shoulder, giving it a gentle shake. A mewling noise came from her throat and a warm sensation shot through his body unwillingly. He retracted his hand and watched as Elisabeth rubbed her eyes and opened them.

"Oh-" She exclaimed, pushing herself upward. "Are we leaving?"

"Immediately." Ardeth replied standing back up before offering her his hand. "The horses are ready."

"Good. We wouldn't get very far without them." The woman joked as she accepted his extended hand. Ardeth didn't reply to her attempt at humouring him, instead he placed two of his fingers in his mouth and whistled loudly.

The two horses neighed and trotted over to them. Elisabeth eyed Samir's horse, Sawsan, cautiously. She was slowly getting accustomed to riding, but actually getting on the creature, that was a trick she still hadn't mastered. She doubted she ever would.

By the time she got next to Sawsan, Ardeth had somehow already managed to climb into his saddle. She could practically feel his eyes burning into the back of her head as he watched and waited for her to get onto her horse. She puffed her cheeks as she let out a deep breath. If Samir had been here he would have probably acted the same way as his brother. Although he would have also made a sarcastic comment or joke while staring.

Thankfully, Elisabeth got on Sawsan fairly easily and rather quickly. Still she didn't dare turn her head to look his way. Leaning forward, she patted Sawsan's neck and whispered a thank you for not moving away as she tried to get on.

"Lead the way, chieftain." She commented.

::::...::::

Travelling through the night was something she never did with Samir. He always preferred to travel during the day. Ardeth on the other hand chose to do the exact opposite of his younger brother. Elisabeth had no idea what the benefits were from either one of those option, but what she did know was that she favoured the latter.

However, one would expect that navigating through the desert at night with only the moon and stars to guide you, was the more challenging way to go. Yet it seemed Ardeth had no trouble with going down that route at all. Thankfully all Elisabeth had to do was follow his lead. He rode next to her on his horse, Amun. His gaze focused mainly on the horizon, but every now and then she caught him looking her way.

Things had gone quiet between them ever since they left the formidable rock formation and the weather had also turned a lot colder than it had been a few hours ago. It wasn't anything Elisabeth couldn't handle, but she was thankful for the warm robe Dalila had given her with before leaving the tribe.

"You are free to tell me if you wish to stop for a second." Ardeth suddenly said as he noticed Elisabeth pulling the dark cover tighter around her.

The woman shook her head. "I'd rather not. I would prefer it if we could cover as much ground as we can tonight."

"A wise decision. Though we will rest at some point, I assure you." He added. Elisabeth merely nodded and stared ahead once again.

After another hour filled with silence, except for the soft howls and chitter of stirring creatures in the darkness, Ardeth came to an abrupt halt. He manoeuvred Amun in front of Sawsan. The Medjai glanced over his shoulder and sat a bit more upright in his saddle. He'd seen something, Elisabeth was sure of it. But what had it been? An animal a person?

She leaned forward to look around him but didn't immediately see anything out of the ordinary. Except for a rather dim, yet clearly flickering, light blinking in the distance. She narrowed her eyes and could only conclude that it must be a fire of some sort.

"People." Ardeth said softly.

"People?" Elisabeth jolted backwards in her spot and Sawsan automatically responded by stepping aside from the sudden shift in movement taking place on top of her.

"What kind of people?" The woman asked.

"I do not know. They could be lost or resting. They could be treasure seekers. Archaeologists. Tomb raiders."

Elisabeth's mouth twitched and a week old memory entered her mind. British, guns, knives, Samir screaming, blood. Suddenly she was beginning to understand why she preferred traveling through the night and its darkness instead of setting up camp. Despite the lack of vision because the only light one had were the stars, you were still able to have some grasp of your surroundings.

When sitting around a campfire, your view was pretty much obscured because of the flames, which made the surrounding area appear even darker than it was. Wasn't that how those English men managed to get the advantage on Samir? Elisabeth had been sleeping in her tent, unaware of the dangers unfolding only a couple of feet away from her. She wasn't going to let that happen again.

"We should avoid them at all cost."

Ardeth turned his head and looked at her. His brow furrowed. "We might not be able to. I understand you want to be cautious, but as a Medjai I also have an obligation."

"An obligation of what? Getting us into danger or facing our deaths?"

Her hands were beginning to sweat and her mouth felt dry all of a sudden. Was Ardeth planning on heading over there and confront whoever was sitting around the fire? There was no way for Ardeth to know who or how many people there were present. It could be one, two or perhaps more than five. And what if they had weapons? It was too risky.

But Ardeth was a man of duty and honour. If there were strangers in the desert, it was his task to check out what he was dealing with. Unfortunately, he was on his own without his fellow medjai. Elisabeth was a factor he didn't add into the equation, there was no need for her to deal with this. In fact, he'd rather she stayed right there. Out of sight and out of danger.

"Wait here." He told her firmly.

He didn't even wait for Elisabeth to protest. He turned his horse around and darted off into the direction of the shimmering light.

"Ardeth!" She shouted but quickly clasped her hand in front of her mouth. Dumb cow, she cursed herself.

Her heart throbbed heavily in her chest. She couldn't let him head out to those people all on his own. He really was insane and incredibly reckless. Did the man think he was invincible? Not even Samir would do such a foolish thing. Actually that was a lie. He obviously would. He'd done it plenty of times in the past. Perhaps she never could have imagined his older brother to behave in the same manner. He was the Chieftain of the Medjai, for Heaven's sake.

"Come on, Sawsan. Quietly now." She whispered at the horse who responded with a soft snort.

The closer Elisabeth got to them, the more uneasy she was beginning to feel. She stopped a good couple of feet from the small camp and quickly slipped off Sawsan. Samir's horse was a true gift indeed as the horse stayed right in her spot while Elisabeth crouched down and moved into the direction of the nearest tent. She hid behind it and listened to the different voices coming from the other side.

Ardeth was talking to them in English, meaning that the people were most certainly foreigners. But what kind of people were they dealing with? She leaned forward and peeked around the corner. Ardeth was still positioned on top of his horse, which at least gave him some form of advantage should things go wrong.

The people he was addressing hadn't bothered to stand up, except for one. Elisabeth spotted five people in total, too much for the two of them to handle. She focused her attention on the guy standing near Ardeth. She couldn't see him properly, except that he was most definitely male. Middle-aged, or so she gathered based on how he stood there. Proudly. It reminded her a little of her father.

He replied in Arabic to Ardeth, but clearly it wasn't his native tongue as his accent was rather thick. The other funny thing was the hat the man wore. A tarboosh. It was obvious he didn't care much for Ardeth approaching them in the dark. He sounded irritated. Elisabeth moved back and was uncertain what to do next. The older man seemed civilised, but the others didn't. They looked more like bodyguards.

The woman tilted her head back and looked at the tent she was currently situated behind. It was a rather elaborate one, not like the one she'd shared with Samir. Perhaps a little look on the inside would give her an idea on what type of people they were. She lowered herself until she was lying flat on her stomach. Carefully she lifted the fabric in front of her and glanced into the tent.

There was nobody inside. She spotted a desk, a bedroll, a trunk and lots of documents and trinkets. Despite all of the stuff, it looked perfectly spotless. She could still hear Ardeth's voice answering the man, this time in his own language. Without hesitation, Elisabeth crawled forward until she was inside of the tent. Whatever these people were, they were not simple thieves it would seem.

She pulled herself up with help from the desk and looked at the files stacked upon the surface. This man was an Egyptologist. She was certain of it. The way everything was positioned, the ink and quill, not to mention other small object perfectly lined up in one corner, it all reminded her of how Ludwig Borchardt's study was organised.

Elisabeth's unwavering curiosity bubbled to the surface. Why was this man here, but more importantly, what was he looking for? She picked up one of the files and looked at the title on the front. Seti. She grabbed another file. Anck-su-namun. Imhotep.

"Imhotep?" She whispered under her breath.

She knew that name. Her pulse increased and she licked her lips. It could all be a coincidence, but Elisabeth did not believe in coincidences. Was this man also looking for Hamunaptra? The city of the dead? The burial place of Imhotep. Quickly she put the files back exactly where she found them. But the desire to take them with her were almost too much to bear.

After all, she had lost all of her documents the night she and Samir were attacked by those Englishmen. And wasn't it Ardeth's duty to make sure nobody discovered the City of the Dead? He was probably never going to figure out what these people were looking for. But Elisabeth knew and she was going to make sure they wouldn't be able to find the city.

She reached for the documents once again. At the same time, a voice boomed from the other side of the tent and Elisabeth jumped back with shock. "Get out now. Otherwise we'll have to use force to make ya."

The words weren't meant for her, they were too far away. But she had to leave now before bad things could happen. With the files clasped underneath her arms, she dropped down to the floor and crawled out from underneath the tent flap. As soon as she was back into the open, a shot was fired and she could hear Amun neigh with fright.

Ardeth shouted a command and a galloping noise followed. Elisabeth caught a quick glance of the Medjai riding away. Had he been hit? She couldn't call out for him, the others would notice her immediately. Quickly she began to run into the direction of Sawsan, who was thankfully still standing in the same spot. Elisabeth threw the documents into the saddlebags, placed her foot in the stirrup and got on Samir's horse.

She went after Ardeth as swiftly as she could, but luckily Sawsan knew exactly where to go. Within twenty seconds she managed to join Ardeth at this side, but the Medjai at the most angry look on his face she had ever seen before. With his jaw clenched, his chest heaving up and down and a look of absolute fury in his eyes.

"Did you follow me to that camp?!"

He was mad alright, there was no doubt about that. Elisabeth knew she had crossed a line by leaving when he had told her to wait. Even if it had been for the greater good, as it turned out.

"Of course I did. I couldn't let you go out there on your own, could I?"

"You are lucky they did not see you!" He spat out. "There is a reason why I told you to wait and you ignored that order."

"You can't expect me to listen to something that absurd. Going in there alone is as if signing a death wish. What if they had shot you the minute you showed your face?"

Ardeth pulled on Amun's reins and the horse stepped closer. The Medjai leaned forward and took hold of Sawsan's reins, giving Elisabeth no opportunity to step away.

"That did not happen."

"It could have and you know it. How can I stay back and wait, not knowing what is going on? It was selfish of you and do not give me an excuse of how it is your duty and obligation as a Medjai." She quickly added as Ardeth opened his mouth to reply.

"Do not tell me you've forgotten how your brother got hurt, Ardeth."

The moment she mentioned Samir, the Chieftain blinked for a second. It was then he noticed the look of fear and concern in the woman's eyes. He watched, watched as she pressed her lips together followed by them quivering slightly. She hadn't disobeyed his order because she was a stubborn woman, but because it had all reminded her of when Samir almost got killed. He let go off the reins.

"You are right. I am sorry." He said. "I understand why you felt the need to do what you did."

A shuddering breath escaped Elisabeth. She felt warm and cold at the same time and shivered. "Thank you. I just couldn't let you go alone. If the same thing that happened to Samir would also happen to you...I wouldn't be able to forgive myself."

He understood her reasoning completely. The thought hadn't crossed his mind at all that she could worry for him, not in the same way that she did for his younger brother. It felt odd. But it was a welcoming sensation that currently went through his body.

"I want you to remember one thing." He said all of a sudden and Elisabeth looked up at him. "I am not my brother."

The woman frowned and Ardeth quickly continued. "Samir is one of us, he is a Medjai, but he is not a fighter. Not in the same sense. He is strong, he is smart. But we differ in many ways. I have been in these situations multiple times. It is why I am Chieftain. I am,-" He paused as if searching for the right words.

"I am thankful that you wanted to help me." He leaned back in his saddle and perhaps it was the light of the moon, but it almost seemed as if he was smiling.

"However, don't ever do that again, Zahrah."

Elisabeth stared after Ardeth as he started to move away. She parted her lips and a short huff escaped her.

He had called her Zahrah.

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