Early the next morning the girls arrived at the sight. Before them was the desert, the wind blowing the sand across their faces. Adrienne sighed and walked about a hundred yards from the jeep. There was nothing out here. Marie called to her.
“Look Sug, heres the map.It looks like the entrance is about 200 yards in that direction.”
“well let’s get started. Load up.”
Adrienne grabbed her six guns and put them in each of their holsters, her katana was shoved into it’s holster at her side and the other knives were stowed on her person. Each of the girls grabbed their weapons, shouldered their pack and walked into the desert. Two hundred yards later Adrienne spotted a rock. She studied the rocks surface, seeing a hole and sucking in her breath, she stuck her hand into the crack and pulled a lever, the sand fell away to reveal an entrance bearing the seal of the pharaoh.
Adrienne drew her gun and entered the tomb carefully. Ororo’s eyes flitted to the large wide open space. They started out on the base level, looking up. The tomb itself was completely buried underground, and was built in a square circular fashion. You could only go to the next level after you had passed through the traps on the floor below. Adrienne looked up to find that there were about ten stories of the tomb around them.
They stood in the center, off to her right was a small entrance to the second level. They stood ina room in the center and were surrounded by various objects. There were two entrances to every side of the tomb. On the floor was inlaid a man and a women, going separate ways. Adrienne groaned. Ororo called out.
“Adrienne come here.” Adrienne walked over to where she stood bending over an ancient book. “The language is a mix between ancient Egyptian and Persian writing. It tells a story.”
“The book Marie Antoinette gave us has similar writing, it isn’t
Persian, it’s another language.”
Ororo raised an eyebrow.
“it is?”
“Yes, I am unsure as to what it is yet. We’ll find out in time. Let’s move.”
Ororo raised an eyebrow at her sister’s intensity. There was something bothering Adrienne and it left Ororo concerned. Adrienne moved toward the door drawing her gun, Ororo followed.
They reached the first level and Adrienne pulled out her copy of the book.
“According to what I read last night there was a man named Jeroush. He was the assistant to the king of Persia, before Daniel became apart of the kingdom. He was ancient Egyptian and loved to play the darbuka. The book continues to tell the story of how his talents became widely known, and that when he played he would put his audience under a spell and they would become almost incoherent. The king would use him to entertain his guests, and use him same skill to destroy nations.”
Adrienne walked up to the outskirts of the trap and she noticed a small inscription.
“There is an inscription that says, only those that can play like jeroush can pass. Anyone play or even have a darbuka?”
Ororo walked to the center of the pyramid and came back with a beautiful drum.
“I’m assuming this is our instrument. Who wants to play first?”
Marie shook her head.
“Ah’m not musically or rhythmically inclined”
Kitty shook her head as well.
“Don’t look at me.”
“adrienne?”
“Sure why the hell not. Ro remember that old African lullaby?”
“Yeah.”
“Sing it.”
Adrienne put up an air shield then as Ororo began to sing, Adrienne’s hands began to beat the skin on top of the drum, accenting the notes Ororo was singing. The song was haunting as it spread throughout the pyramid bringing images to the listeners mind of tall African grasses yellowed by the sun, swaying in the wind. The roar of a lion as it echoed it’s dominace and dominion over the land on which it’s golden paws stood, The black skin of the African king who ruled his lands.
The trap released itself and several arrows came flying in their direction hitting the shield and bouncing off. As Adrienne continued to play the trap began to fold in on itself, mechanisms in the floor screeching and whining as it folded in on itself.
After five minutes of playing and singing the mechanisms stopped whining and where the trap had once been now was tiled floors and gold inlaid walls. Adrienne pushed the shield forward and raised an eyebrow. Slinging the drum against her back she took a cautious step forward. The trap had been completely disarmed.
IN the middle was a pressure point, Adrienne raised an eyebrow but left it alone.
“There is a pressure point, don’t touch it, it probably rearms the trap. Marie before you cross go into the next room and gather all that’s there except the book.”
Adrienne began to study the gold walls. Ororo studied the one across from her.
“Adrienne what do you make of this?”
Adrienne avoiding the pressure point moved next to her. Down at the bottom of the inscription was a women, laid in gold. Adrienne moved back to her side and saw a man at the bottom.
“These walls contain More of the legend. Transcribe it, it may serve itself useful. The man and women are consistent with the
ones on the floor in the room we entered by.”
Adrienne translated and Ororo transcribed the story as she read it off. Marie came back five minutes later her bag full.
“Sug these are strange objects. Ah got em all even the nasty pieces of an animal.”
“Good we never know what we’ll need. I’ve never seen such a unique arrangement before. These traps seem to be based off a certain set of legends.”
“and you never will again.” A male voice echoed through the corridor, Adrienne drew her gun and turned quickly.
Jonathan Proudstar stood in the doorway, his massive muscular frame easily filling it.
“Hey put the gun down you also won’t get through this without us. As you noticed there is a man and a women side of this tomb. I am assuming you have the man’s side of the legend, and it seems you’ve disarmed the first trap. Well done. I have the women’s side of the legend, your side, which will take your specific skills as women. Marie anntoinete chose well this time, though I wish we had not met beforehand.”
Adrienne narrowed her eyes as the other three men stepped in behind him.
“explain now.”
“We heard that Marie Anntoinete had the other half of the book. We found ours in a tomb in Mesopotamia and have been searching for this treasure ever since. We think that she didn’t know there was another half of the book. We were hoping to ask you to join us in cracking this case. You were recommended to us through my father, whom you once worked for Adrienne. The golden head? Your first job? My father was the buyer.”
Adrienne nodded.
“I remember. A nice man.”
Jonathan nodded.
“Please, don’t freak out. Don’t be mad at us, just help us we want a common thing here.”
Ororo stepped forward.
“How do we know you won’t betray us?”
Logan nodded.
“It’s time we told you who we really are. Everything we’ve told you before is actually true, however, we are also archeologists, we’ve been looking to prove the existence of this tomb and this person for 4 years. When we were serving in Iraq more specifically in various professions, we met and became friends. Jonathan here told us about the book and we all became obsessed. You found it first, which means the find goes to you and all credit but we need you and your skills as tomb raiders to help us get through this.”
Ororo nodded.
“Now it all makes sense you’re the James Howlett that published the paper on Mesopatamian gender issues. Dammit I should have recognized it. What do you need from us?”
“All we need is a few artifacts and pictures, the rest is yours.”
Adrienne nodded.
“Done. Though I promise one wrong move and you’ll be joining our dead king.”
Jonathan nodded.
“fair enough. How can we help?”
“What’s your knowledge of these legends?”
Between the four men they explained the legend and Adrienne translated and read through their book. Jonathan transcribed for her a goofy smile on his face. He had only heard of tomb raiders never met one, and in his mind this one was damm sexy.
Adrienne noticed his scrutiny and smiled.
“Proudstar pay attention.I’m translating and you’re falling behind, stop looking at my ass.” Jonathan laughed a deep throaty laugh.
“Yes maam.”
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