A/N: Thanks for sticking with this story, especially if you were one of those that left a review. I really do appreciate those.

Thanks again to MicroGirl1225 for the pre-read of this chapter.

PM me if you spot anything you feel needs correcting, as this hasn't been beta'd.

Chuck is now successfully hacking while Sarah is now out of Egypt seeking information from Set's ex-wife.

Chuck vs Egypt

Chapter 10

Chuck had spent the morning searching through the file system, checking on any files not hidden away, just in case any wrongdoer had been sloppy, but of course they hadn't.

He had to keep an eye out for the bots and fend them off when they attacked, but he was prepared for that. It did mean he couldn't get too focused on any particular finding, though.

It got interesting in the afternoon when Chuck plunged into the email system and particularly into Set's emails.

Set was good at keeping his inbox free, filing away a correspondence he wanted to keep in subfolders. Only one of these folders was secure and only accessible with a password. Chuck ignored that on this first pass, just noted the folder name, "N" in the Ennead language. The cryptic name suggested as much as the secure measures. Chuck suspected it to represent Set's wife, Nephthys, the one who had slept with Osiris and run. Would that contain evidence of her misdemeanors? If so, why not share them to prove Osiris wrong?

More recent folders contained Set's interaction with those in his close circle. They were set apart from the tree structure he used for all of the rest of his saved emails. Chuck reviewed those in the tree structure first. Under a category of reports, there were six folders, one named for each of his direct reports plus himself. Each of the direct reports had several folders representing those reporting to them, alongside two others labeled current and past. The current ones seemed to be email submissions from the individual on the most recent state of their Egyptians and with how they were feeling. However, the documents with the details were stored in a linked file system. Set must remove those on receipt.

He followed one of the links for Sagoth and found himself in a folder containing a document with the submission and Set's notes from their last meeting. This was one of hundreds of folders for Sagoth.

Chuck already knew that this file system could be accessed in multiple ways. Here, by individual and then the time, but also could be done the other way around too. The latter enabled a snapshot of the current state across all of the region covered by his team.

Chuck noted all this. He'd review in more detail some other time.

Back with the current emails, Set's logical filing wasn't present. There were reports yet to be filed away, alongside other correspondence. He opened some of these and found a mixture of condolences for the loss of his wife, concerns for the animosity between him and Osiris, and even one speculating on readiness for some sort of attack from Osiris on Set, along with offering support if that occurred. That one was from Sagoth.

This folder would take some time to work through.

Chuck suspected that these hadn't been filed away due to Set's current state of mind, too disorganized, but that would also suggest he wasn't trying to mobilize troops, unless that was in that secure folder and Sagoth's email hadn't been stored there yet.

All this was a reminder of the size of Chuck's task ahead.

Sarah's mood now fully matched that of her partner, Ma'at.

They'd been trudging around Uruk all day, apart from a brief stop for lunch. It seemed that although humans couldn't eat Ennead food, the reverse was not the case. In fact, Ma'at brightened as she ate this exotic food until it was time to move on. Then, the mood set in again for the afternoon and into the evening.

"We should head back before it gets dark," Ma'at said.

Sarah just grunted her acknowledgement, not feeling like words. When either had spoken, it'd been in Sumerian. A quick session for Sarah with the learning tool on the flight over had enabled that. It wouldn't have been sensible to be speaking in Egyptian.

They had briefly spoken about lodgings over lunch and Ma'at had said they should stay at the flier rather than try to find anywhere else. So, Sarah's weary legs had to climb the stairs up the building back to the roof.

Once inside the flier, Sarah just slumped onto one of the seats, too tired to do anymore.

Ma'at smiled for the first time since lunch. She walked to one of the storage units and brought out something Sarah hadn't seen before. It was like a sword handle but instead of a blade at the end, there was a circular plate facing to the side. The Ennead walked over to Sarah telling her to stand.

Sarah struggled to her feet and discovered the purpose of the device. Keeping it about four-and-a-half inches from Sarah, Ma'at swept it up and down the front of her body before moving around her to repeat it for her sides and back.

All of Sarah's aches and pains disappeared as some sort of invisible beam hit her body.

By the time Ma'at had finished she felt completely rejuvenated.

"Another of Thoth's inventions?" she asked.

"Indeed. I don't need it as quickly as you seem to, but it's still useful."

"What are we going to do, Ma'at? The city isn't huge but there must be a few thousand people here and a lot of streets to search."

Ma'at growled and grabbed her communicator. Thoth answered almost immediately. "Found her?"

"Not with the useless tool you supplied," Ma'at growled. "The range is too small. We've fruitlessly walked the streets of the city all day."

Sarah saw him look at Ma'at, confused. "You can adjust the range."

Two sets of jaws dropped. "What!?" Sarah and Ma'at cried out simultaneously.

"I thought that would be obvious," he replied.

After a minute of cursing, Ma'at looked ready to kill him. Sarah felt her agent mask lowering over her. She coolly asked him, "How do we adjust it?"

Once he explained, she took it from Ma'at and made the adjustment. A red dot appeared on its screen. The Ennead they were trying to find was in the city to the west of their location. Sarah looked at her companion. "There must still be an hour of light left."

Ma'at nodded. "Let's go."

Although Ma'at muttered about what she was going to do to Thoth for not explaining the tool's use better, both felt more hope as they set off. Sarah felt they were as guilty for their lack of understanding as he was. Neither had asked for a full explanation.

Chuck wearily pushed away from the desk. He'd been sitting at it for the whole day without a break. He knew he should've stopped for lunch and also just to walk around, but he hadn't. He'd gone into Piranha-mode and just kept going.

He thought about health recommendations from his time. Something about getting up and moving around for at least five to ten minutes every hour, and you'd improve circulation, reduce muscle stiffness, and lower the risk of chronic health conditions. Yeah, sure. Well, he was getting up for a lot longer after probably about ten hours, so would get all those minutes bunched together.

He was pretty sure that if Sarah had been with him, she would've enforced a healthier approach and at least a lunch break.

Trying not to think about the missing blonde, he stood up. He was stiff but he'd get over it.

Thoth was on his communicator in a heated conversation across the other side of the lab. Chuck decided not to disturb him and headed out.

He'd have a shower, make some dinner, have a drink or two, maybe alcoholic ones, and then think about what he'd learned today. Tomorrow, he was going to repeat what he'd done for Set with Osiris's email and file store. It was probably the same, but worth checking. Planning next steps in more detail seemed sensible, so he'd think about that this evening after dinner. but he also wanted to repeat what he'd done for Set with Osiris.

He also needed to get an early night. He hadn't gotten much sleep the previous night. Remembering the bed gymnastics that he and Sarah had performed made him warm all over. She was quite an athletic woman and very adventurous, it seemed. It was a good job Captain Awesome had made him go jogging with him occasionally, thus making him fitter than his natural inclination. He would never keep up with Sarah if that hadn't been the case.

He'd take the memory of last night to bed with him. Sweet, sweet dreams, he hoped. He also hoped she was getting on ok in that Sumerian city.

Sarah and Ma'at stood beside the bed looking down at the unconscious form on top of it.

The room stank of alcohol. That wasn't just from the woman's breath, but from the bottle lying on its side on the floor and the pool surrounding it.

Nephthys was not going to talk tonight.

It hadn't taken the two of them long to reach the building in which they found her, but getting to her within it had taken longer.

Sarah was impressed at how well her partner had hugged the walls, staying in the shadows, as they sneaked past others within the building. She had frequently used such skills but had no idea when Ma'at had needed them.

So, here they were. They'd found Nephthys but she was useless to them like this.

They couldn't take her back to the flier, even though that appealed. How could they explain them carrying an unconscious woman between them? It was tempting to stay and wait for her to wake, but others may come in here and find them early in the morning. They had no idea of her morning arrangements.

"When she moves, we'll get notified," Ma'at said. "We'll find her when she leaves here tomorrow." Sarah reluctantly agreed.

Once they left the residence, Sarah said, "I'd not thought of this before, but when she sees you, she might run, or call for assistance to get away."

Ma'at was silent for a while. "She might. You should meet her in a non-threatening way."

Sarah considered that for a few strides. "Maybe when she sits for a drink or lunch?"

"And I could then join you."

Sarah wasn't happy with the delay, but felt better about the next day with a plan.

She hoped Chuck was doing ok without her. She knew she was going to have a night of missing him ahead. Should she call him and talk, or would hearing her voice make him miss her more? She decided to just send a message so he'd know she was ok. That shouldn't affect him so much, should it?

Chuck woke up with a start. He'd finally managed to get to sleep after several glasses of red wine that he'd gotten from the replicator. It had taken several attempts to create something that tasted close to drinkable. He didn't wake with a headache, though, so that was good.

He wondered about calling Sarah. Surely she wouldn't be lurking in the shadows early this morning.

He reached for the communicator and saw that he'd missed a message from her. Damn!

* Finally found her, but she was inebriated and we couldn't revive her.
Will try again tomorrow. Missing you *

He rapidly typed a reply.

* Sorry, I only just woke up. Glad you're ok. Take care *

A few moments later, the communicator indicated he had a call. Looking at the screen, it was from the woman he loved.

"Hi, Sarah," he said, looking at the most beautiful vision.

She smiled. "Hello, Chuck. Catching up on your beauty sleep?"

He chuckled. "Somebody wore me out the previous night."

She laughed. "Says the man who kept me awake for hours and hours."

"So, d'you think you'll finish there today?" he asked.

"We hope to meet her today, but I'm not sure how that'll go. Fingers crossed?"

"Just seeing your face makes me happy."

Her smile broadened. "Same for me, Chuck. We're back at the flier waiting for her to move, then we'll head out."

"If she drank so much that she passed out, she may not wake for a while and then feel too bad to move."

"Ma'at tells me that the Ennead don't get hangovers."

"Wow. Lucky them. I've got one."

She looked sadly at him. "Is that how you got to sleep?"

He wasn't going to admit that and make her feel bad, or make himself feel like a desperate loser. "Nah. Just decided to try to create a Shiraz. Turns out not to be easy. Lots of attempts."

She laughed. "And you had to drink the full glass of each to test them."

He grinned and nodded.

She grinned back. Thoth had told him how to capture an image during a call so he did that.

She frowned. "What did you do?"

"Captured you grinning. I'll keep that photo beside me during our time apart."

"Aww. That's sweet. How do I capture yours?"

He explained and she soon said, "Gotcha."

They talked for a little longer, then Sarah said, "I need to have a shower in case we have to set off early."

"I'll have one too, and imagine you're with me."

She waved a finger at him, tutting. "Naughty!"

"And you're not imagining that?"

"Well, I am now!"

"Speak to you later, beautiful," he said.

"Yeah. Will do, handsome."

As soon as the call ended, Chuck set the background image for the communicator to Sarah's image. He looked at it fondly for a minute or two. She really was the most beautiful woman he'd ever met. The female Ennead were all beautiful, but she really left them standing. He felt so lucky that she had chosen him as a boyfriend.

He wandered into the bathroom for that shower.

Ma'at and Sarah had both showered, dressed and eaten breakfast and still no movement from Nephthys. "Maybe what she drank last night caused a hangover after all," Sarah said.

"Unless the Sumerians have created something very different to the Egyptians, I doubt she'd get the symptoms you described." Ma'at smiled. "If they have, it must be good. Maybe we can sample their drinks while we're here."

"If we get what we came for today, I want you sober enough to fly us back."

Ma'at laughed. "Desperate for your man?"

Sarah blushed. "Well, yes, but also to complete the assignment."

Ma'at laughed more. "I think you want Chuck more."

Sarah said nothing but thought the Ennead was probably right. Chuck had cast his spell over her.

For the next hour, she sat drinking coffee and Ma'at drinking ambrosia.

Then, the detector beeped. It was just like the sound Sarah remembered from bugs back home.

Visibly there was no movement displayed. "She's up and moving about. She may shower and eat before she leaves," Ma'at said.

"If she leaves," Sarah replied.

"Oh, I think she'll want her human contact."

It was another hour before they detected movement on the detector.

"Let's go," Sarah said.

Chuck sat looking at the screen. Osiris wasn't as organized as Set. He had the same tree structure for his report emails, but everything else was all still in his inbox. Thousands and thousands all in one place.

The report emails had links to his file store and Chuck suspected this was a standard set up passed onto the two Ennead and they just used it.

Osiris had no secured private emails. However, the mess of having everything in his inbox was challenging enough. The only good thing was that he left everything in his outbox as well, and although there were a number of them, the more recent ones would be easy to scan. Probably the same was true of his inbox, just would take longer to find anything they needed.

The plan he'd concocted the night before was on the basis that Osiris would be as organized as Set, but that wasn't the case.

He decided he should just dive into the emails Osiris sent out since his supposed night with Nephthys and see what he could find. It may be easy or not, but that was his new plan.

He got started.

Sarah and Ma'at fairly quickly spotted Nephthys. She was wandering around the bazaar, not particularly looking for anything, just soaking up the atmosphere. She wasn't seeking attention, or getting any more than you'd expect for a beautiful woman on her own. She certainly wasn't getting the attention you'd expect for a goddess, but then Sarah realized that nor did Ma'at.

"Do you mute your appearance?" she asked.

Ma'at frowned briefly, then it cleared. "You mean do we try to look as humans do?" Sarah nodded. "We can when we want to appear like others around us."

"Another of Thoth's inventions?"

Ma'at smiled at her. "No. It's something we have naturally. Don't ask me how that is, but we can do it when we want. It takes a bit of energy to maintain it, but not much."

"But you don't when people come to you for help?"

"No, we don't."

"And they don't see you as the same person?"

Ma'at shook her head.

Sarah thought of the superheroes in the movies she'd seen. How Superman could wear different clothes and put on a pair of spectacles and transform into Clark Kent with no one the wiser. It had always seemed one of the most ridiculous aspects of that storyline, but it obviously worked here.

They split up, with Sarah tailing Nephthys and Ma'at walking some way behind her. This was something Sarah was used to doing and she'd always been good at it. Following, but not being seen.

After just over an hour, Nephthys walked into an eating establishment. As Sarah walked closer, she saw the Ennead sit at a table and order something. She didn't know if it was food or drink, but it seemed like the perfect opportunity.

She walked in just as a drink was placed on the table in front of the Ennead. Nephthys picked it up and was taking a sip as Sarah sat on the opposite side of the table.

Nephthys frowned. "I do not seek company." Her voice was a lovely sound, even though slightly irritated.

"No, but I seek yours." Sarah then lowered her voice as she leaned forward. "Nephthys."

The Ennead's eyes went wide. She looked around rapidly, quite nervous. Her eyes settled back upon Sarah only just realizing that a blonde, blue-eyed human was sitting with her, not a native Sumerian. "What do you want from me?"

Sarah said, "I just need some information."

"Why?"

"There are two people in dispute back in Egypt. It's causing trouble."

Nephthys frowned. "How can I help with that?"

"It's Set and Osiris."

Nephthys's jaw dropped. Then she covered her face with her hands.

"Hello."

Sarah turned and Nephthys raised her head and looked at Ma'at. "Ma'at," she whispered.

"Do you want to talk here or somewhere else," Ma'at asked as she sat.

Nephthys responded, "Can we have a drink here and then go back to my place? We can talk more freely there."

She waved to the man who had served her and ordered two more drinks.

Sarah accepted that this was probably best, but it was another frustrating delay.

Thoth came and sat next to Chuck after a couple of hours. "I had a call from Ma'at yesterday evening."

Chuck looked up from the computer. "Oh?"

"They didn't know they could adjust the range of the scanner. They had spent the day with it in the default setting, close range. That only helps find someone within a building, not a city."

Chuck had now guessed, but asked the question anyway, "Was that the conversation you had when I left?"

Thoth looked confused. "I didn't actually see you go."

"You were agitated," Chuck said. "It seemed like a difficult conversation?"

Thoth nodded. "Yes. Ma'at can get quite angry."

"Why didn't you offer to tell them how to adjust it?" Chuck asked

Thoth replied immediately, "I shouldn't have to. They should have asked."

Chuck sighed. "But they didn't know it could be adjusted at all, so why would they ask?"

Thoth looked flustered. "Well- well they should've asked about all the features it had."

Chuck smiled. "Never assume what people know, and if you have something new for them, outline all the features. If people want to know the details, then they'll ask."

Thoth stared at him for a moment or two and then nodded and silently walked off.

A/N: Thoth's clever, but not smart. Just like some of us humans.

So, things are progressing now. Chuck will find out more, and Sarah and Ma'at will get information from Nephthys in the next chapter

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