“Amon! Over here!”
He crouched down next to me and smiled. “You have found it.” The hollowed-out sphere had a sun engraved in it. Taking the sand sphere from my bag, Amon whispered some words and the sand on the surface of the stone shifted, creating an exact impression of the sun to match the mold in the floor. Fitting the stone ball into the depression, he turned it slowly, and there was an audible hiss as the floor began to move.
A wall rose to block off the entrance to the treasury and, then the entire floor sank as if we were in a large elevator. When it came to a stop, we were several levels below King Tut’s tomb. Stepping off, Amon removed the stone ball and the treasury room lifted, returning to its original position. It took the light with it, so Amon lit his skin. Before us was a vast chamber supported by stone columns.
Deeply etched engravings and paintings depicting fascinating events, very different from the ones in the other tombs, lined the walls. I saw the sun, the moon, and the stars, the great pyramids, images of the god with the giraffe head, and what I recognized as Anubis pointing to three men in the process of mummification.
“What does all this mean?” I asked.
“This is my story. My tomb,” Amon responded quietly as he moved forward. He stopped at a large sarcophagus carved from wood. The detailing on it was exquisite, and I gasped when I realized it looked like Amon. Gingerly, I traced the curves of his face on the wooden image.
“It’s you,” I whispered.
“Yes.”
“But there was a golden sarcophagus in the museum when you woke up. It looked like you, too.”
“I do not know why or how I came to be in that sarcophagus. Perhaps a second one was created by those who watch over us, or perhaps I was relocated to protect my identity, but this is the one that was created for me by Anubis.”
“Why isn’t it golden, like King Tut’s?”
“Neither I nor my brothers have a need to collect or display our power with great treasures. Our purpose is simply to serve. If there were rumors of gold or a treasure associated with us, then thieves and marauders would constantly seek us out.”
“I like this better,” I said as I ran my hand over the polished wood, which had been expertly carved and painted with great care. Amon’s smile indicated that my remark had pleased him, but his thoughts and emotions were shadowed. “Amon?”
“Yes?”
“Why is your sarcophagus gleaming? It looks like someone just oiled it.”
Amon walked around to the other side. “I do not know. Perhaps our caretakers have been here. I think we need to open it. Stand back, Lily.”
Slowly raising his arms, Amon chanted softly. The top of the huge coffin shook and rose off its base. It was heavy, and Amon’s arms trembled as the lid moved to the side. Lowering his arms, he gently set it on the floor, where it settled in the sand before falling against the side of the sarcophagus with a heavy thud. I went to him, offering to share my energy, but he waved me off and leaned against the coffin until he caught his breath.
I wasn’t sure what he or I expected to find, but there was nothing. The huge casket was empty.
“I do not understand,” Amon said, peering inside. “I should have awoken here. How was I brought to your city?”
“Someone must’ve moved you.”
“But who? Why?”
“Maybe there was someone who didn’t want you to wake up in Egypt. Do you have enemies?”
“Most people do not even know we exist.”
“But some do. Who wouldn’t want you to perform your ceremony?”
“The ceremony benefits all mankind. The only one it harms is the god of chaos, Seth, but he does not have a foothold strong enough in the modern world to cause us harm.”
“Are you certain about that?”
“As certain as I can be about such things.”