Cryptic Abyss

I felt my heart pound violently in my chest as we ran away from the huge locusts that had appeared out of nowhere. The swarm flooded the sky in formation, not unlike a thunderstorm cloud. The bugs devoured some of the American workers who were also trying to flee. Nothing was left of them, which was odd because locusts from my understanding were not carnivorous. The Americans took off quickly into the underground city. Our group was a bit more strategic about it, instead of rushing around and getting lost we made our way into a chamber, taking it one step at a time, making sure our sense of direction was not compromised in case there was the need for escape. Suddenly, the ground started shaking and the sand in front of us started to bubble up almost as if it had come alive. We all stared at the pile interested but backed up in case it was dangerous much like all issues we had run into so far. Blue metallic-looking bugs started flowing from the pile, climbing over each other to be the first to get out for their first meal in thousands of years.

"Scarabs!!" Evy shouted in my ear, rendering me deaf for a minute. She grabbed Jon and my arms and started to run away.

"Go, go, go!! Run!" Rick echoed her sentiments as the wave of scarabs threatened to overtake us. I heard gunshots as Evy, Jon, and I left the area. I knew Rick would try to kill them but this seemed impossible. We took a left out of the corridor and onto a stone bridge. Jonathan leaped off to the left and onto a stone pedestal, Rick following his lead. Evy pulled me to the right off their direct path. Evy moved around her back against the stone slab as we watched the army of beetles, suddenly the back opened and Evy started to fall, I watched the fear in her eyes as she tried to grab my wrist. I quickly grabbed her trying to pull her up. I lost my balance faster than I would have liked and we both went tumbling down into the dark passageway. When the devil slide did let us out we were back in the labyrinth, so much for understanding where we were at all times. Evy looked at me terror filling her entire being, I motioned to her to check our surroundings, she poked her head around the corner where we were sitting and got up slowly using the wall to support her weight.

"Oh, Mr. Burns. Thank goodness I was just starting to get scared. I lost everyone, well except Eris here." Evy said as she walked towards the man who had his back to us. I stood up fast and followed her lead watching all around us because something was off, it didn't feel right.

"My eyes, my eyes!" I heard Mr. Burns wail to us, in clear pain as he turned around to show us his empty eye sockets. I heard light breathing behind us and spun around quickly to be face-to-face with the corpse that we had just recently excavated. He was alive, then everything stopped, just like the dream. But this was unusual, all my motor functions and senses were gone. It was like I was a prisoner in my own body. I watched through my eyes as Ahmanet took control.

"You've arrived exactly on time, what exactly are your plans here?" I heard myself speak in the Ancient Egyptian tongue. I heard a gasp from behind me... Evy. I turned to face her, strutting toward her I reached my hand towards her throat but stopped and instead redirected the action to her face. She backed up against the wall pressing herself against it, trying to disappear. I struggled against Ahmanet's hold on my body. I reached for Evy's hair twirling a strand between my fingers. Evy studied my face, her own struck with horror. The mummy looked to Evy's face, a stream of emotions running through his muscles causing his face to contort into a painful half-smile. He grabbed my arm causing Ahmanet to swing my left fist at his face. Not expecting this fast movement, the punch landed, causing him to lose his balance. He regained it rapidly and ran at me, I straightened my arm out at my side, parallel to the ground. He ran into it and I slammed him to the ground, my hand around his neck.

"Without full regeneration, you will submit to my will," I spoke, smiling at his attempts to pry my hand away from him. I released my hold, he stood up next to me a look of surprise coming across his face at the powers that were flowing out of me.

"Please help me," Evy mumbled looking from me to Mr. Burns. I turned to look towards the man who was now on the floor trying to crawl away. I felt my face contort into a ridiculous smile as the woman controlled my well-being. We were one, and if I had to go along with this hell then I would make her go through hell to control me. I would not let her hurt my friends and family, but I knew she would get stronger the longer she was inside my body. I would have to be strategic about when I intervened.

"He took my tongue," Mr. Burns tried to articulate but had some trouble because of the recently missing appendage. The mummy screamed, his spotlight being taken away from him.

"Please don't leave me," Evy said trying to keep her composure. I reached for her neck again but this time the mummy stopped me. His rotting hand wrapped around my wrist as if to tell me that he was not going to condone this fate for Evy. I relaxed happy knowing that she would be safe for now. Ahmanet backed off waiting for his next movement to determine her course of action.

"Anck-su-namun" He groaned out, a sense of longing in the complex name uttered. I almost felt sympathy for him. I felt Ahmanet's empathy seep through the surface of her normally cold emotions. She understood the pain this creature had gone through, but she was quick to cover it, to not show weakness around me. Evy moved slowly against the wall trying to get away from the decomposing mess that was beside me.

"Come with me my princess Anck-su-namun," The creature said holding his hand out to Evy. I fought against Ahmanet and regained a bit of strength, feeling my body again.

"There you are! Will you quit playing hide and seek? Come on, let's get out of here, whoa!!" I heard Rick's voice and internally celebrated the fact he had found us. He looked at me with curiosity but I could see the fear behind his eyes when our eyes met. He finally took a look at the mummy beside me and exclaimed his surprise again.

"Evy?!" I heard Jonathan now coming down the chamber. I turned towards him, he was with Henderson and Daniels. He dropped his torch in fear as the other two Americans cowered behind him. The mummy had been fed up, his plans being foiled, and roared at Evy and Rick in front of him. I mentally struggled harder to get control back in my own hands, I did not want to be friends with the putrid walking-talking mummy next to me. Finally, Ahmanet broke her hold. Rick bellowed back in response, confusion across his face, unsure how to respond. He did exactly what he had done in our youth. I could see what was running through his thoughts, he was ready to get us out of there. I reached out again to the mummy grabbing a knife from my boot as I always carried one on my person. I slashed his bicep when he was distracted. He went to grab my throat, but I used his arms against him. I took hold of his forearm and twisted the fetid arm behind his back then pushed him off to the opposite direction of our escape. As I pushed, I realized I still had Ahmanet's residual strength. The mummy went flying into the wall, I watched as he attempted to get up. Rick then pushed Evy away towards the exit before grabbing my arm in his and running out of the chamber.

"Move!!" he yelled to the rest of our party. I moved out of Rick's grip and ran on my own, Henderson attempting to grab my hand. I ignored his constant advances and sped up to avoid him. It was a surprise when I heard the familiar click of rifles arming themselves. I stopped in my tracks, looking at the scene before me. The men from the other night were there in their black robes prepared to kill on-site.

"I told you to leave or die, you refused, now you may have killed us all. For you have unleashed the creature that we have feared for more than 3,000 years." The leader with the facial tattoos told us. He removed the scarf from around his face, I watched his eyes as he watched my movements. I straightened my back feeling as though I needed to assert my presence, this was no doubt Ahmanet's doing, I could feel her battling inside my brain trying to take control back. I pushed her further away from the forefront of my mind. Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, I thought to myself smiling.

"Relax, I got him," Rick said to the man. Feeling emasculated by the fact that the man was certain that Rick did not kill him.

"No mortal weapon can kill this creature, he is not of this world." He replied, explaining to Rick his reasoning. He waved his arms to his men looking down and away from my eyes. His men brought forth Mr. Burns looking very defeated he lay limp in their arms as they dragged him by his arms over to his buddies.

"Bastards," Daniels whispered, not fully comprehending the situation.

"What did you do to him?" Henderson asked bouncing off his friend's logic. I didn't care I was too focused staring down the black-clad mystery I wanted to unravel.

"We saved him, saved him before the creature could finish his work." He told them pointedly.

"Now leave all of you quickly, before he finishes you all. We must now go on the hunt and try and find a way to kill him." He said as he moved from his position in front of us towards the back where Rick and the rest of us were standing. I wanted to reach out and take him aside but Rick stopped my motion before I could even start.

"I already told you, I got him." He interrupted my thoughts as he decided that he needed to keep his fragile ego intact. I rolled my eyes and shoved him with my shoulder out of the way.

"Know this, this creature is the bringer of death, he will never eat, he will never sleep, and he will never stop." The man told us as he made a move to get away quickly from me. I reached out and grabbed his arm, stopping him and pulling him to a different corridor where my brother and friends couldn't hear us.

"Is there something you needed?" He asked as he ripped his arm out of my grasp glaring at me. I was taken aback, I wasn't sure why I deserved this treatment.

"Okay, I'm not entirely sure what I've done to offend you, but I wanted to say thank you for the other night," I told him, to my knowledge I hadn't done anything to bother him.

"I apologize, Miss..." He trailed off realizing he did not know my name but decided to just leave it at that. His chocolate eyes felt as if they were burning holes right through me.

"Sure, anyway... The look on your face, you can't seem to keep your eyes from tracking me, I think you know more about what's happening to me than you're letting on." I told him brushing off the rudeness the man was displaying towards me.

"Yes, well, I have-- but the stories are adamant about your... Condition." He told me shifting his weight from one foot to another. I watched him as he tried to articulate what he was trying to say to me.

"Which is?" I prodded him wanting him to give me an actual answer.

"You are only alive because you were chosen." He said avoiding it again.

"Chosen? Chosen by what?" I asked him, trying harder to get the answers I so desperately wanted.

"Evil. The ultimate evil. Perhaps even worse than what your friends have just unearthed. Together you both could start the next apocalypse." He told me, I stood there stunned trying to take in what exactly he was trying to say to me.

"Okay, Mr. Doomsday." I brushed off the intensity of the conversation with carefully placed sarcasm. As I made a move to leave the man stopped me, he grabbed my arm and looked down at my wrist for an instant then pulled me close to him, almost nose to nose with each other.

"You have been marked for death with your tattoos. The path you lead now will determine the course of your family's lives as well. I say this as a warning, be cautious once you've given in. There is nothing to be done but wait." He leaned in closer, his frame looming over me his eyes looking straight into my soul. His scent consumed me, he smelled like a lotus flower with just a hint of vanilla, I'm sure his natural scent was mixed in as well. I could smell the slight variation of dried sweat that had accumulated from being outside in the blazing sun during the day. It was not uncommon lotus flowers could be found on the banks of the Nile. Although I believed that this was from bathing in the river rather than spraying cologne on. It was enticing and I wanted more but the man had a hate for me boiling underneath the surface. I was lost in the man, he smiled leaning in closer to me our lips just centimeters from touching. Then he stopped, pulling away from me abruptly and turning to walk away.

"Wait, I don't even know your name..." I muttered, feeling bothered. I knew he wouldn't hear me he was already halfway out of the corridor trying to catch up to his team. I trudged my way back to Rick and the others trying to find a bright side to the situation but my brain could no longer come up with anything, we were all seriously screwed.