Alex and Jonathan said nothing the whole time, feeling horribly guilty.
Evy fussed over Ardeth, as they expected, while Rick paced, and Safti just sat watching his life-long friend, sighing occasionally.
Ardeth finally awoke two hours later.
Everyone jumped up and surrounded him when they heard the soft moan.
“Ardeth?” said Evy.
Ardeth opened his eyes, and winced. He closed them again, wishing the room would stay still.
“Open your eyes again, Ardeth,” Evy pleaded.
He did, with a sigh.
Having seen his friend injured many times, Safti saw what the problem was without Ardeth having to voice it. “He is dizzy,” he told her.
Alex came closer and grabbed onto Ardeth’s arm. “I’m sorry, Ardeth!” he said, starting to cry.
Ardeth looked at him—or tried to, anyway. “It is not your fault, Alex.”
“Yes it is, I wanted you to come outside to see the snow!” he said, sniffling.
“I...have seen it before…”
They weren’t sure if that was a question or a statement.
“Yes, once before, Ardeth,” said Evy. “Do you remember?”
Ardeth blinked, trying to bring back what he’d seen in the flashback. “I saw you, Rick, and Jonathan. We were outside…” he frowned with an exasperated sigh. The fall he and Evy had taken and the resulting unconsciousness served to have robbed him of the details that the flashback contained.
“Jonathan…” he said. “Jonathan hit me with one…”
Jonathan smiled, remembering. “That’s right, old boy, and you got me back good.”
Safti was shocked to hear that Ardeth had been in a snowball fight, of all things! “When was this?” he asked.
“When the situation with the Euphrates Stone happened,” Rick answered.
“Ah,” said Safti, trying not to remember that horrible incident.
“Ardeth,” Evy said, daring to hope. “You remember this? Anything else?”
Ardeth started to shake his head, but caught himself in time. “No, I do not remember the occurrence. I…saw it, as if through someone else’s eyes.”
Everyone sighed.
“Well at least we know his brain still works, if it’s trying to bring back his memories.”
Alex smiled at Jonathan’s choice of words. “Of course his brain works, he’s not like you, Uncle Jon!”
For the rest of the day everyone took turns staying with Ardeth. He slept through most of it, until it was Safti’s turn. Safti told Ardeth more of what the Med-jai do, and what they’ve done over the years. Eventually Ardeth fell back to sleep, leaving Safti with his thoughts.
What if he never regains his memory? he thought. Our people will be crushed. Enemies will hear, and try to take advantage of the situation. Does he remember how to fight? Will he be able to adequately defend himself, if attacked? He sighed, wishing he could bring Ardeth home to Egypt. Perhaps his memory will return while there, he thought. But no, he is not fit for travel.
He sighed again, wishing he knew what to do. Suddenly he heard a noise, and looked to see that Ardeth was tossing lightly in his sleep.
Safti stood over him, and gently grabbed his arms, not wanting Ardeth to make his own headache worse. “Ardeth, wake up.”
It took another try before Ardeth opened his eyes, and he stared unseeing into space.
“Ardeth, what do you see?” Safti asked, assuming he was having another flashback.
Ardeth didn’t answer, however, and Safti had to repeat it, louder.
Ardeth’s eyes snapped to Safti’s face, looking perplexed. His eyes seemed brighter then they should be, and Safti felt his friend’s forehead, to find it slightly warm.
“Ardeth?” he said, anxiously, realizing he hadn’t answered him the second time either.
Ardeth and his Med-jai stopped in front of Hut-waret’s campsite. Ardeth took out the case with a piece of cloth, and threw it at his enemy.
Hut-waret automatically reached out to catch it, but then remembered the poison and the case flopped around in his hands like a hot potato before Hut-waret let it fall to the sand. He looked up at Ardeth with anger. Anger that the Med-jai was still alive—obviously somehow having received the antidote—and anger that he’d been caught red handed, his behavior at touching the case making it obvious. He’d planned on waving the antidote in the Med-jai’s faces, after Ardeth would’ve been dead. He sighed and picked up the case with a handkerchief and opened it. Inside was a beautiful jewel. He took it out and held it up in the sun, where it sparkled.
“Very nice,” he said.
Ardeth noticed Safti growing anxious. “Now, uphold your end of the bargain.”
Hut-waret smiled. “My end?”
Safti made a sound heard only by Ardeth, and his horse took a step forward.
Ardeth held out his arm towards Safti, as if telling him to remain where he was.
“Hut-waret, you wanted the Stone in exchange for our women. Now you have it.”
Hut-waret made a motion with his left hand, and a couple men went into a small tent. They came back dragging a woman with them.
Safti gasped. “Suhaylah!” he yelled.
Suhaylah stood there grasping the arm that was around her throat. She felt the knife against her skin, and tried to communicate to her husband through a look.
Hut-waret laughed. “I told you I wanted the Euphrates Stone. This is not it. Therefore, the bargain is forfeit, and so are the lives of your women.”4
“Ardeth?”
With a start, Ardeth heard his name being called, and he blinked, to find Safti bending over him, looking worried. There was a commotion and he heard rather then saw Rick and Evy rush in.
“What happened?” Evy shouted.
Safti glanced at her. “He has a fever…he either had a nightmare or another flashback.”
At the word ‘fever’ Evy gasped, and placed her hand on Ardeth’s forehead.
“I am all right,” he told her.
Safti sighed in relief at hearing his chief’s voice. He realized he still had Ardeth by the arms, and he let go.
“Evy?” Rick said, impatient.
“It’s low, Rick.”
Rick echoed Safti’s relieved sigh.
“Ardeth?” Safti said, and waited for Ardeth to look at him. “Did you have another flashback?”
Ardeth seemed to think, before nodding.
“What was it?”
Ardeth sighed, before he spoke. “I was on a horse…” he frowned, as he tried to recall the significance of the jewel case he’d been holding.
They all waited patiently, as Evy came into the room with a bowl of water and a towel. No one had even noticed her leave.
“I was holding a black case, and I…threw it at someone.”
Rick and Safti instantly knew what he was talking about, but neither of them voiced it, hoping Ardeth would remember himself.
“The man caught it, but dropped it to the sand. He was very angry…” he then looked at Safti. “I told him to uphold his end of the bargain, and he then had a woman brought out…” Ardeth stopped when he saw the look on Safti’s face.
Safti saw the reason for Ardeth’s hesitation, and said, “That was my wife, Suhaylah. She and the other Med-jai women were taken, in exchange for the Euphrates Stone.”
Ardeth tried to remember what happened after the events of his flashback, but couldn’t. “Did we…reclaim them?” He was almost afraid to ask.
Safti smiled, now. “Yes, Ardeth. Every one of them.”
Ardeth smiled back, relieved.
Everyone was quiet for the next few minutes, the only sound being the water dripping when Evy wrung out the towel she kept wetting and placing on Ardeth’s forehead.
Ardeth knew she meant well, but the water was very cold, and she had said the fever was low. What was the point of making him shiver if the fever was not bad? “Evy, I am all right,” he told her.
“Yes, you do seem to be,” she agreed, noting with relief that he was coherent and not delirious. “But I don’t know why you have a fever and I don’t want it to rise any higher.”
“Probably because of his little adventures when he wasn’t supposed to be out of bed yet,” said Rick.
Safti wondered why the word was plural, not knowing about Ardeth and the secret tunnel incident.
That night Ardeth’s fever rose despite Evy’s trying to prevent it, and he went between more flashbacks and apparent incoherency. He was utterly confused at the images he saw. One minute he was fighting in battle, the next he was riding through an oasis with Rick and getting attacked by a pygmy,5 the next a very angry-looking black man was holding him by the throat while he was lying on the sand,6 and then he was on a bus getting slashed up by an undead mummy.2
The O’Connells and Safti were very worried as they watched, not knowing what was going through Ardeth’s mind. At one point, Ardeth was extremely agitated by whatever it was he was seeing, and Rick had to grab him by the arms and try to calm him down.
Rick’s voice got through to Ardeth for an instant, and he stared up at him.
Suddenly he was seeing himself holding a scimitar, and Rick shooting it out of his hand. He watched in amazement as Rick rolled backwards and came up holding a lit stick of dynamite. “We will shed no more blood!” Ardeth heard himself yell. “But you must leave. Leave this place or die!1
When Ardeth realized that Rick was actually his enemy, he tried to struggle out of his grasp.
“Ardeth! Ardeth, it’s Rick. Come on, buddy…”
Suddenly Ardeth was seeing Rick looking down at him. “Ardeth? Ardeth, old buddy, say something!”
Ardeth heard his friend's voice, as if from a distance. "Rick?" he whispered.
"Yeah, buddy. Let's get you outta here.”6
Ardeth was now more confused then ever. One minute he and Rick were fighting each other, and the next, Rick was saving him!
With a groan, he closed his eyes tight, trying to shut out the contradicting images.
“I must go,” Ardeth said, and turned to head the opposite way through the jungle.
“Wait!” Rick said, following after him. “You can’t go!”
Ardeth stopped, and turn to face him. "I must let the commanders know where we are,” he explained. “If the Army of Anubis arises...."
Rick put a hand on Ardeth’s shoulder. “I need you to help me find my son!”
Ardeth looked at him, seeing the fear in Rick’s face. He nodded. "Then first I shall help you.”2
Ardeth opened his eyes, and looked at Rick.
Rick stood from his chair and went over to him. “Ardeth?” he said.
Evy paused in wiping Ardeth’s face with cool water, and felt his forehead. “I think his fever is coming down!”
Safti, standing behind Evy, nodded. “I agree. His eyes are not as bright.”
Safti’s voice finally sounded familiar to Ardeth. He tried to speak, but was disorientated by the scenes still playing in his mind.
They all stared at him as he blinked repeatedly, trying to stay awake. His body won the battle, however, and he fell asleep.
Rick went back and plopped down into his chair, Safti doing the same.
“I wonder how long this is gonna go on,” Rick said. “Before Ardeth gets his memory back.”
Safti sighed. “I wish I knew, my friend.”
“If a man does not embrace his past, he is unprepared for the future.” Ardeth knew that Rick was having a hard time believing what he was trying to tell him, insisting it was all coincidence, as they sat loading guns in Izzy’s dirigible.2
Izzy’s dirigible!
Even while asleep, Ardeth’s subconscious mind knew that something regarding Izzy’s dirigible was important.
The Ardeth of his dream, still loading guns beside Rick, tried to figure out what was so important. What was it he needed to know?
Izzy’s dirigible? What about it? No, it must have nothing to do with the crazy flying boat. What could it possibly be?
“Izzy…”
Rick and Safti stood and went closer to the bed, as Ardeth started to mumble.
“What did he say?” Rick asked Evy.
She looked at him with a frown. “It sounded like he said ‘Izzy’.”
“Izzy?” Safti echoed. “Who is that?”
“A moron I know,” Rick said, with a frown, trying to figure out why Ardeth had said his name.
“The man who owns the dirigible, and saved our lives at Ahm Shere,” she stressed the last part to Rick, irked that he could sound ungrateful towards the guy.
Rick looked at her. “You’re right,” he said, by way of apologizing. “But why would Ardeth bring Izzy up in a fevered stupor…”
“Izzy,” Ardeth said again, eyes still closed. “Get…Izzy.”
Everyone frowned, exchanging puzzled glances.
“Rick,” said Evy. “You don’t think his reason for being here has something to do with Izzy, do you?”
Rick shrugged. “I dunno. Izzy doesn’t live in England.”
“Perhaps he came here, and Ardeth pursued him,” said Safti.
“But what could Izzy do that was so terrible, that Ardeth had to leave right away and follow him?” Evy asked.
“Heh,” Rick said. “With Izzy, you’d be surprised.”
“Maybe Ardeth will be able to tell us when he wakes up,” said Evy. “His subconscious mind is obviously working, if this truly is about Izzy, maybe he’ll remember when we mention his name.”
“I hope you’re right,” Rick said. “If Izzy has done something, he’s had five days to make it worse.”
Everyone dozed on and off, staying by Ardeth’s bedside. He’d finally calmed, and slept like a log the rest of the night. By daybreak, Ardeth’s fever was much lower, now only minimal. He slept through the morning, not waking till noon.
When Ardeth opened his eyes, he was confused at first, remembering being in a hundred different places, which made no sense to him.
When his head responded with a throb, he sighed in frustration. Will it never go away?
Evy heard his sigh, and leaped out of her chair. “Ardeth! How do you feel?”
He looked at her, and suddenly saw in his mind Evy fighting a red-robed man, who hit her and threw her over his shoulder as he ran out of the room.2
“Ardeth?”
“Confused,” he answered. “I keep seeing…other things.”
Evy smiled, taking it as a good sign. “That’s wonderful! Your mind is trying to regain its memory.”
“All these things really happened.” It was a statement, not a question.
Evy hesitated. “I’m sure at least some of them did, you were in pretty bad shape last night.”
Ardeth could remember some of the flashbacks. He replayed them in his mind, trying to see if he could go any further in the memories of the incidents.
“Ardeth?”
He looked at her. “Yes?”
“Last night, you said something, in your fever.”
Ardeth blinked, waiting.
Evy took a deep breath, hoping beyond hope that he would remember. “Do you remember Izzy?”
Ardeth frowned.
“He owns a dirigible. We all flew in it, when we were hunting down Lock-nah and Imhotep, who’d kidnapped Alex.” She watched Ardeth’s face; waiting for the reaction she hoped would come.
“Alex,” he said. “Lock-nah…the jungle.” He remembered the flashbacks where Rick had asked for his help in finding Alex, and the black man holding him by the throat in the sand, and he realized it was Lock-nah, his mortal enemy. There was no sand in the jungle, however…
“Yes!” Evy cried, ecstatic. “The jungle of Ahm Shere! You remember!”
Ardeth suddenly saw the dirigible flying off into the sky, containing the O’Connell’s. “Sirma ma-asalam ya ahi,”* he said, raising his hand to the sky, in farewell.
“Izzy…” he said. Something tried to make itself known in Ardeth’s mind. “That is why…I am here…”
“Ooooooh!” Evy cried, practically clapping her hands with glee. Suddenly she dashed to the door, and screamed for Rick.
The sound of him running up the staircase was comical. He burst into the room, and bellowed, “WHAT!” Seeing Evy standing next to Ardeth, seemingly hanging on his every word, he rushed over.
“Did he remember?” he asked.
Evy nodded her head, smiling from ear to ear.
“Well?” Rick asked Ardeth, who was frowning, apparently in thought.
“I came here because of Izzy,” Ardeth said, still frowning.
“I knew it—”
“Shh!” said Evy. “Why, Ardeth? What has he done?”
Ardeth shook his head, and sighed. “I am not sure.”
Evy’s grin vanished.
Rick plopped into her chair. “Great! Do you at least know if any mummies are coming after us?”
Ardeth smiled slightly. “I do not think so.”
“Thank God,” Rick sighed.
Ardeth looked around the room. “Where is Safti?”
“Jonathan took him to send a message to the Med-jai, to let them know what’s going on.”
Ardeth nodded. “My memory is returning…slowly, it would seem.”
Evy grinned again.
“That’s better then not at all!” Rick said, happily.
Rick and Jonathan spent the afternoon driving through London and checking all the hotels and public places, hoping that they might actually spot Izzy somewhere. They knew that there was only a remote chance, but it was a chance nonetheless.
“I can’t believe that all this trouble can be blamed on that scamp,” said Jonathan, still irked that Izzy’d tried to steal the Scepter of Osiris from him.
Rick shook his head, as he drove. “I know. If we actually find him, he’s gonna wish we didn’t.”
By 5pm they gave up, and went back home.
When they entered the house, they were surprised to see Safti and Ardeth in the living room.
“Ardeth,” said Rick. “Should you be out of bed?”
“I have grown tired of laying there,” Ardeth replied from where he sat, on the couch.
“You did not locate Izzy?” Safti asked.
Rick shook his head. “Lucky for him.” He looked around the room. “Where’s Evy and Alex?”
“Evy is cooking,” Safti told him. “And I believe your son went to see a friend.”
“Okay.” Rick and Jonathan sat in chairs near the fire, and no one spoke for a minute.
“Have you remembered yet why you followed after Izzy?” Jonathan asked Ardeth.
Ardeth shook his head. “No. However, I feel that he did not actually do something that the world will suffer for.”
Rick’s eyebrows went up. “Really? How can you be sure?”
Ardeth shook his head. “I can not. It is just a…feeling.”
Jonathan laughed. “Well, Ardeth old boy, we have learned to trust your ‘feelings’.”
Ardeth smiled, with a nod. “I believe I am remembering more of you and your family, Rick,” he said. “As well as some of the incidents that we have been through together.”
Rick grinned. “Are you? That’s great!”
“You’re probably regretting remembering the incidents, I bet!” said Jonathan.
“Have you remembered the Med-jai, and what you do as Chief?” Rick asked.
Ardeth sighed. “Some. I now remember Safti and others from our tribe. Some things I still do not recall…such as the names of the Elders.”
Rick and Jonathan busted out laughing. “Gee, I wonder why,” said Rick.
Ardeth and Safti smiled. Rick and Jonathan were at the Med-jai camp enough times to know what it was like dealing with the Elders.
Suddenly they heard footsteps. “Would you two like—Rick! You’re back!”
Rick stood, and crossed to Evy. “We didn’t find Izzy.”
Evy sighed, as she wiped her hands on a towel. “Well, you tried,” she said. “There’s always tomorrow.”
“Is the food done, old mum?” Jonathan asked. “I’m starving!”
Evy laughed. “Of course you’re starving, when are you not? Yes, dinner is served.”
After dinner Jonathan went into town, using looking for Izzy as an excuse. Everyone else talked in the living room, trying to get more memories out of Ardeth.
“When we first met, we were enemies,” Ardeth said.
Rick nodded. “Hate to say it, but we were. We were trespassing on the Med-jai’s property, if you wanna put it that way. You and your warriors attacked the whole expedition, to drive everyone off.”1
Ardeth nodded. “I remember…you knocked me from my horse and we fought briefly.”
Safti gave a short laugh. “Until he lit a stick of dynamite.”
Ardeth nodded. “Yes, until then. But later, we fought together, and succeeded.”
Rick nodded. “We sure did.”
“Ardeth, I have been dying to ask you this for years!” Evy said, suddenly realizing they never found out. “How on earth did you get out of the temple, after we defeated Imhotep that first time? Rick told me later that you were surrounded by mummies, he was sure you wouldn’t survive.”
They all waited, hoping he remembered.
Ardeth frowned. “I was fighting them off…then there was an explosion; one of your sticks of dynamite, I assumed?” he said, looking at Rick.
Rick nodded, with a lopsided grin.
“The shock of it threw the mummies and I to the side, and the stone wall collapsed…” he paused, trying to bring back the full memory. “I was stunned, but so were the creatures; I at least knew what had happened, while they didn’t, and I crawled out from under them and ran before they had a chance to grab me again.”
Rick smiled, happy to see that his explosion had in fact saved Ardeth’s life. He opened his mouth to speak, but suddenly the front door was thrown open.
“Look what I found!”
They all looked to see Jonathan dragging Izzy into the house, by his collar.
Everyone—except Ardeth—jumped to their feet.
Rick walked over to Izzy and grabbed him by the shirt, getting right down to business. “Izzy! What did you do that Ardeth had to follow you here?!”
“Huh?” Izzy said, looking past him to see Ardeth, who’d stood by now. “Oh, hi there.” Noticing the bandage around his head, he said. “What happened to you?”
“What happened?” Rick echoed, holding Izzy against the wall. “He almost got killed because of you!”
Evy ran over and grabbed Rick’s arm. “Now, now, Rick! If you kill him we won’t find out anything!”
Rick glanced at her, and back at Izzy, whose one visible eye was opened wide. Rick shook his head and ripped the eye patch off his face. “You put that stupid thing back on? What, do you want to lose an eye, or something?”
“N-n-now come on, Rick, what is this all about, anyway?” Izzy asked, grabbing his eye patch back and sticking it in his pocket.
“You want me to spell it out for you?” Rick said. “He found out whatever it is that you’re up to,” he said, pointing at Ardeth. “And followed you all the way here to stop it!”
“What Rick’s trying to say,” said Evy. “Is why did you come to England?"
“To publish a book!”
“A book?” Evy and Jonathan said in unison.
“And what is this book about?” Rick asked, menacingly.
“Uhh…” Izzy looked around in fear, as if he was about to bolt.
Jonathan stood in front of the door, blocking it.
“All right, all right! You got me. I won’t publish it.”
“What is it about?”
With shaking hands, Izzy pulled a large envelope out of his shirt.
Ardeth walked over. “It tells we went through at Ahm Shere,” he said. “Including its location, and that of the Med-jai, as well as the details regarding Imhotep and Anck-su-namun.”
Everyone smiled at Ardeth, happy that he’d suddenly remembered. Then their eyes trained back on Izzy, who shrank against the wall.
“You were gonna tell the Med-jai’s location?” Rick said, in shock. “And Ahm Shere? Are you insane!”
“Well…I…uhh…”
"Thanks to you with a book I almost lost my best friend?!" Rick said, incredulous, abruptly pulling a gun out of his holster and pointing it at Izzy’s face. "Okay, Izzy, you're getting shot."
“I thought I was your best fr—okay! Okay!” Izzy said, hands raised, backing up. “Sorry! I won’t sell it, I swear!”
“I’ll say you won’t,” Jonathan said, grabbing the manuscript from Izzy, and handing it to Rick, who was about to rip it to shreds, but instead rolled it up and stuck it in his pocket.
“What are you doing?” Izzy cried.
“I wanna see just what you wrote, you piece of scarab crap,” Rick answered.
Izzy reached a hand towards the envelope sticking out of Rick’s pocket. “You won’t like it…”
Rick slapped his hand away. “You try again to publish this thing, and Ardeth will succeed in preventing you next time.”
Izzy looked at Ardeth, and, bandaged head or not, shrank from the intense glare Ardeth set on him.
“Okay, uhh…I guess I’ll be on my way…” Izzy said, slinking his way towards the door. “Nice seeing you all, again! Oh, hey Rick, uh...can I borrow some money?"
“What?!” Rick roared.
“Well, I spent it before I made it!” Izzy sighed. “I was so sure the book would sell, I uh…kinda celebrated all week…”
“You disgust me.” Rick grabbed him by the collar and dragged him to the door. “Goodbye, Izzy!” He opened it, and flung him out.
“And may the fleas of a thousand camels infest your armpits!” Jonathan yelled.
Everyone looked at him like he was insane.
“I always wanted to say that,” Jonathan told them, chuckling.
Everyone busted out laughing, as the tension over the no-longer impending crisis slipped away.
“So that’s it?” said Jonathan, incredulous. “No mummies, no treasure, no danger, nothing?” He shook his head. “A book…Izzy doesn’t seem the scholarly type to me.”
“He’s anything but,” said Rick. “The plot was already written. All he had to do was write it down and make money off it.”
“I can’t believe it,” said Evy. “After what we’ve all been through, after what poor Ardeth has been through…” she shook her head.
Safti looked at Ardeth, to see that he was frowning, staring into space.
“Ardeth?” he said, putting a hand on his arm.
Ardeth’s eyebrows furrowed even more, as if he was concentrating on something.
Realizing that Ardeth may be remembering something else, Safti just stood there and watched him, not wanting to interrupt and possibly ruin it. He suddenly noticed that the whole room had grown quiet, and looked around to see everyone silently staring at Ardeth, obviously knowing what was going on.
Eventually Ardeth blinked, and looked around. Seeing everyone’s eyes on him, he looked slightly embarrassed.
“What have you remembered now, Ardeth?” Safti asked.
“The accident,” he said, looking a little pale.
Safti pulled at his arm, and made him sit on the couch. Everyone followed, and sat wherever there was a seat, anticipating the story.
Ardeth was silent for a minute, before he spoke. “I was sitting in the middle of the bus, on the left side. Suddenly the bus swerved; I do not know what it tried to avoid. It veered to the right, nearly throwing me into the aisle. I did not expect it to then veer violently to the left, and topple. I was thrown into the window of the bus as it tipped.” He paused, with a sigh. “The bus finally slammed into the ground, and I remember hearing the glass break.” Unconsciously he brought a hand to his head, and rubbed the injury. “Suddenly, people landed on top of me,” he gave a half-smile. “And I was buried under them.” He frowned, pausing again. “I…think I was stunned for a minute; I remember hearing screams and talking…eventually the passengers got off me, and I came back to myself when some men tried to pick me up off the broken glass. I attempted to stand and they tried to prevent me, but I told them I was all right.” He looked up when he heard what sounded like a snort come from Evy. “They helped me up…I remember the concerned looks of the people standing around me as the pain finally hit me and I reached up to feel my head…I looked at my hand and it was covered with blood. Then…” he frowned. “Everything spun…and...then I awoke in the hospital.”
Ardeth looked at everyone, to gauge their reactions. Evy was shaking her head, looking upset. Rick and Safti both looked angry; at Izzy, no doubt, for being the reason Ardeth was on the bus in the first place. Jonathan looked shocked.
“I say, old boy,” he said to Ardeth. “You come here to simply grab a manuscript from Izzy, threaten him, and leave…and this is what it turned into! You sure get into a lot of trouble.”
Ardeth smiled. “I would not simply have left without saying hello to you all. But as for trouble…it does seem to appear that way. Especially when busses are involved.”
Rick laughed, but then stopped; it wasn’t really a laughing matter. “That’s what I said to Evy the other day!”
Evy stood, and smacked Rick on the arm. “Ardeth, I think you’ve had enough excitement, we’d better get you back to bed!”
Ardeth looked at Rick with pleading eyes as she took his arm and pulled him off the couch.
Rick could only shrug, with a laugh.
Ardeth spent the next week recovering. The relief of solving the problem he’d come to England for, and getting his memory back, helped a great deal; he was able to relax, instead of being full of stress.
He was currently sitting in front of the fire as Evy made breakfast, and he looked up when he heard a laugh that sounded strangely like Safti. Standing, he went to the window, just in time to see Alex throw a snowball at his friend, who was crouching, rolling snow between his own hands.
Ardeth’s eyebrows shot up, at the look of glee on Safti’s face, as he threw it at Alex. Looking to make sure Evy didn’t see him; he bundled up and went outside.
*boof*
Safti frowned in surprise, when he was hit with a snowball on the back of his head. Rick, Alex, and Jonathan were all in his line of sight, who had thrown it?
He turned, and had to duck quickly when another one came straight for him.
Ardeth stood there, laughing.
Safti picked up some snow, and rolled it up good. Just as he was about to throw it, they heard:
“NO!”
Evy came running over, wearing no jacket and holding a kitchen towel as she stood in front of Ardeth, her arms spread out as if she thought she could protect him.
“Safti!” she yelled. “What if you hit him in the head, or he falls?”
“You are right,” Safti said, and started to lower the snowball. When he saw Evy drop her hands, he threw it at her.
“Eeeeeeek!” she shrieked, as the wet snow smacked into her shirt.
Everyone started laughing, as Evy ran back into the house.
Taking advantage of the situation, Ardeth threw another snowball at Safti. If our tribe could see us now! he thought.
Safti grabbed a handful of loose snow, and flung it at Ardeth, knowing that it couldn’t hurt him.
The spray got Ardeth in the face, and he did the same thing back to Safti.
Rick, Jonathan, and Alex stood there, watching, shocked to see the Med-jai warriors—Leader and Second of their tribe, even—throwing snow like little kids.
“Poor guys,” Jonathan said. “Living the hard lives that they do. No wonder they’re enjoying the snow! They are human, after all! It’s fitting that they get a vacation.”
Rick nodded. “Yeah.”
Suddenly Ardeth slipped, but Safti was close enough to grab his arm and keep him upright.
With a gasp, Rick, Jonathan, and Alex ran over, Rick grabbing Ardeth’s other arm.
“You all right?” he asked.
Ardeth nodded, relieved. “Yes.”
Suddenly the door opened again, and Evy poked only her head out, as if to make sure no more snowballs were flying her way. She was wearing a different shirt. “Breakfast!” she yelled, and closed the door quickly, so they wouldn’t have the chance to throw anymore.
Everyone laughed at her paranoia, as they went back into the house.
Finally the day came where they felt that Ardeth was healthy enough to travel back to Egypt.
As they stood at the dock, they were all reluctant to say goodbye.
“Thank you, my friends,” Ardeth said, sincerely. “For your care of me. You are greatly appreciated.”
Evy threw her arms around him, squeezing him tight. “Anytime, Ardeth. You know we love you.”
Ardeth smiled, at her sweet words.
Suddenly the boat’s whistle blew, indicating that the passengers should board.
Rick surprised Ardeth by giving him a quick hug. “Take care of yourself,” Rick told him, still upset over the fact that he could’ve been killed, and over something so stupid.
Ardeth smiled. “I will, sadiqi.”
“Try to stay away from buses from now on, old boy,” Jonathan said, shaking Ardeth’s hand.
Ardeth laughed. “I do not think I shall ever ride another.”
“Ardeth?”
Ardeth looked down at Alex, who was clutching something behind his back. “I want you to take this with you.”
He held out the teddy bear.
Ardeth was speechless.
Evy and Rick looked at each other, in surprise.
“Alex, I could not take away your prized possession…” Ardeth started to say.
Alex shook his head. “I want you to! It made you feel better, like it always made me. Now whenever you get scared, it’ll be there,” he shrugged. “I have other ones.”
Ardeth tried to swallow the sudden lump in his throat.
When the Med-jai still made no move to take it, Alex took his hand and put the teddy bear in it.
Ardeth looked at it, and back at Alex. “Are you sure?”
Alex nodded vigorously, and took a step back as if to make sure Ardeth couldn’t force him to take it back.
Ardeth looked at Rick and Evy to see them grinning ear to ear. He then looked at Safti to see him smiling also, trying not to laugh. Wonderful, Ardeth thought. Safti found out, and will probably spread it around the whole tribe.
Alex was still smiling, obviously glad that he’d accepted the teddy bear. Ardeth bent down and gave the child a hug.
Alex didn’t want to let go. He loved Ardeth, and wished he didn’t have to leave.
“Thank you,” Ardeth said to him.
Alex smiled bigger, if possible. “You’re welcome!”
Everyone quickly made their goodbyes to Safti, and watched as they boarded the boat.
“Hey Ardeth!” Rick yelled.
Ardeth and Safti looked down from the lower deck.
“I think next time we’ll come visit you. You get into too much trouble in England.”
Ardeth smiled, with a nod.
The boat started to pull away, and both parties waved, as a final farewell.
Ardeth and Safti watched as Rick, Evy, Jonathan, and Alex became small dots, and then vanished altogether as the boat journeyed on, back to their homeland, and to their people.
“It will be good to be home again,” said Safti. Then he sighed. “But I will miss the snowball fights.”
Ardeth laughed. “As will I.”
Safti nodded, and looked at Ardeth with a smile. “I am glad to have you back, Ardeth.”
Ardeth smiled back. “I am glad to be back, sadiqi.” He looked at the teddy bear he was still holding. “Safti…”
Safti slapped a hand on Ardeth’s shoulder. “Do not worry, Ardeth. I will not tell anyone.”
Ardeth gave him a look as if to say, ‘you better not’.
THE END
1 ‘The Mummy’
2 ‘The Mummy Returns’
3 My Story, 'Wise One'
4 My Story, 'The Euphrates Stone'
5 My Story, 'One Thing After
Another'
6 My Story, 'Wrath's Return'
*‘Sirma ma-asalam ya ahi’; what Ardeth said at the end of TMR. “Peace be upon you, my brother.”
‘Shukran’ Arabic for ‘Thank you’
‘Afwan’ Arabic for ‘You’re welcome’
‘Sadiqi’ Arabic for ‘My friend’