by K. T. Tomb
As was customary on the base of an archaeological dig, there was a designated area for everything. Sanitary conveniences were always to the rear of the camp with the residential units in front of that. Office, research, storage and sanatorium spaces were on one side while recreational spaces were on the other. Those usually included a mess hall, a common room and a communication center. The labs and the analytical center for the operation were under a huge dome that also covered the entryway to the underground chambers. The labs were completely sterile and climate controlled to enable around the clock study of the pieces that were coming up from underground one by one. The Doctor and his team did not want any out of season rain to flood the site. Neither did they want any prying “eye in the sky” snapping photographs of what they were uncovering.
Chapter Three
“Now, what I haven’t had the chance to tell you all is the biggest piece of this puzzle and also the most important find in modern Egyptology for the past ninety years,” Nassir told them over dinner that evening. “The Great necropolis is an obvious enough place to discover mummy after mummy, however we have found one in the East of the city which has created more questions than there are answers to cover them. That’s the reason I asked you and your team to join me here, Chyna. I need there to be as many answers as there are questions.”
“Nassir,” Chyna said, nodding in agreement, “tell us about the mummy you found.”
“We found it in a central chamber within the maze, Chyna…” he started. When he saw the puzzled expression on her face, he realized he had to do a little backtracking.
“I apologize, in my hurry to tell you about the mummy and the item we hope to find next, I have neglected to share some of the details. What we have found and carefully covered over with that dome is a maze of pathways that interlock and branch off into each other in a series of concentric shapes. Some are squares, some are other shapes, but they create confusing alleys and chambers. It was inside one of these chambers we found the alcove carved into the wall. The sarcophagus was fitted inside it, containing the mummy.
“We found it with an intact brain, but no heart and there were amulets woven into the wrappings which signified that the body was that of a high priest of the Sun God. To remove the organs, the embalmers had created a hole through the peritoneum and removed the intestines, stomach, liver and even the heart. Spices and lichen were spread over the head and abdomen, and the body was wrapped and then put in the coffin. The scans revealed that it was a mummy of the end of the eighteenth dynasty which means he lived during a portion, if not all, of the Amarna Period. That was particularly strange since Akhenaten had killed all the priests of Amun-Ra in order to properly establish his “one god” religion which worshiped the Aten. Plaques bearing his name repeatedly were also placed on several places on the body. When we studied the name, we realized that they may have been intended to ritualize a reincarnation of that person’s soul.”
“Whose mummy is it, Nassir?” Lana asked.
“The name we found attached to the body so many times on the amulets and the plaques was ‘Imhotep’,” he finally revealed.
They all gasped.
“We can only presume that the priesthood of Amun-Ra had a cult of their own, which we as archaeologists and historians were never aware of before. They seemed to believe that Imhotep, who was the original High Priest of the third dynasty, was reincarnated over and over again to lead the temple through the years.
“If that is the case, my theory of the existence of the mythical Egyptian Book of Life has even more credibility. It would make sense that if the book was commissioned by the pharaoh Djoser, he would have given his High Priest, Imhotep, precedence over it and the priesthood would have wanted to be sure that there would be someone of the lineage to always ensure the work of keeping those records current and safe.”
“So you are saying that you think the book is here as well, Nassir?” Chyna asked.
“That is exactly what I am saying Chyna,” he replied. “The legends say that when Ay betrayed Ankhesenamun to usurp the throne, she stole the book and hid it within the place that he had imprisoned her. If that prison was within these chambers, then the book is here.”
When they had finished their conversation, it had been dark for hours but the team felt that they had a good understanding of what they were getting into. They were excited at the idea of possibly turning everything the world knew about the ancient Egyptians completely upside down with Dr. Nassir’s new discoveries.
“Tomorrow’s going to be a long day,” Chyna said to them, as they stood in front of the dormitory. “Oscar, I want you to get set up in the data control center over by the office building. They’ve got a good internet connection and all the other resources you should need.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he replied.
“Get in touch with Sandra at Head Office and also, Sirita in India; let them know that we arrived safely and that the dossiers are on the way. They should be on standby to offer assistance as needed.”
Oscar nodded.
“Lana,’ she continued, “I’m going to want you with me in the chambers tomorrow but before we go down to the dig site, I want you to check out the office spaces Dr. Nassir reserved for us. We might need a place to meet and also to analyze our clues if this turns into anything remotely as huge as I think it will.”
“Okay, Boss lady,” she confirmed.
“We’re giving Dr. Nassir the two weeks we promised him; his time starts tomorrow at oh-eight-hundred hours. I’ll see you two at the front of the compound at seven. Sleep well.”
“Good night,” Oscar said, turning towards the men’s dorms.
Good night,” the ladies replied, heading inside.
The next morning, Chyna was up before dawn. She put on a pair of leggings, a tank top and her sneakers and went for a run. Normally, she considered her sidearm, given what had taken place on their drive from Cairo to Luxor, but she decided the SIG would be too heavy to cope with on the serious jog she was planning to take; besides there were armed guards everywhere. As she ran out the compound gates towards the valley, Chyna was smitten by the beauty of the desert. The yellows, pinks and oranges of the sunrise were bursting over the horizon and already the air was warming up. Desert rodents darted here and there, trying to drink from the dew on the plants and gather one last morsel of food before the heat drove them underground for the day. She ran two miles out along the main road and then turned around and ran back. When she got back to the camp, the sun was up and everyone was busy getting ready for the day. She went into the women’s dorm and bumped into Lana leaving for the office building.
“Had a good run?” she asked, wrinkling her nose at Chyna’s sweat soaked body.
“It sure was,” Chyna replied, grinning. “The desert is so beautiful in the morning.”
After Lana left, Chyna took her things and went over to the wash house to take a shower. The water was cold and refreshing which was perfect to cool her off after her exhilarating run. Showered and dressed in a white tank top and khaki cargo shorts, she went to join Lana, Oscar and Dr. Nassir in the mess hall for breakfast. Though she didn’t usually eat much in the morning, Chyna decided it would be a good idea to have something substantial since she didn’t know what the day would throw her way. The kitchen steward handed Chyna a bowl of steaming semolina porridge, over which he spooned fragrant wild honey and sprinkled slivered almonds and dried fruit. She selected a slice of brown toast, a wedge of cheese and an apple to add to her tray before she went to sit down at the table. They all agreed that the food was extremely satisfying and should do them good in tackling the tasks that lay ahead.
Nassir had joined them and was busy with his porridge when Lana, decided to press him for more details.
“How many people are working with you under that dome, Doctor?” she asked.
“Hmmm, let’s see,” he began. “I have Abdul and Zohar who have been mapping the chambers using a device that mainly functions on the principle
s of G.P.S. It collects data about their position and when they upload it into the software, the angles of their turns, the distances they walked and the directions they walked in all gets calculated and a diagram of the tunnel is produced. This technology has cut down the time needed to map the underground structure tremendously. We actually believe that we have almost covered the entire thing.
“Then there is Amira, the paleontologist, who takes care of any antiquity we find on the dig. She has catalogued at least seventy-five objects that have been removed from the site so far, including the mummy and its sarcophagus.
“Everybody else is part of a team given to me either by the government,” he said, as he waved to some of the security guards who were seated in a corner, “or by the university.”
“What about the Bedouins?” Chyna asked, stiffly. The encounter on the highway had entered into her mind again. She had originally taken their driver’s word for it that they had been attacked by bandits, but after what had taken place in Greece and Turkey, she had become more conscious and more suspicious of those surrounding her. Perhaps those had been bandits on the highway, but what if they were something else?
“Oh, you noticed them,” he said, softly. “You have your connections and I have mine, Chyna. When I’m this deep in the desert, I like to keep myself in the company of the people who know it best. All it would take for me to lose everything out here is a decent enough sand-storm or the right set of bandits. In either situation, not to mention the thousands of others that can arise out here, they are my greatest ally.”
“Fair enough, Nassir,” Chyna said, “but please don’t be offended if my team and I keep our distance from them, and not just the Bedouins; all of them. We took a trusted student of our last client under our wing and she drugged us, got us kidnapped, and nearly got us killed.”
“Your version of archeology seems to take on a completely different tone than mine does,” Dr. Nassir responded. “No offense will be taken, Chyna. Although I wouldn’t mind hearing about what you ran into on your last adventure.”
“Around a campfire when we are celebrating our success,” she grinned.
“Good. I will hold you to both parts of that promise,” he returned, beaming.
“Okay then,” she said, getting up from the table. “I think it’s time we saw what exactly we’ve gotten ourselves into.”
***
Under the cover of the giant dome, the air was cool and dry. They could all hear the humming of the condensers that were feeding the air into the vents overhead. It was a welcome reprieve from the weather outside which was already getting quite stifling.
Doctor Nassir handed them all dust masks and watched them put them on before he let them into the sealed area where Amira was working with the mummy called ‘Imhotep’.
“Amira,” Nassir said, “this is Chyna Stone and her team. Miss Stone is the archeological explorer I told you I was going to call in on the case.”
“I heard you had arrived, Miss Stone,” Amira said, extending her hand to shake Chyna’s. “I was pleasantly surprised by how quickly you and your team got here.”
“Thank you, Amira. We were actually in Turkey when we got the call so that was quite lucky for the doctor.”
“Indeed,” she agreed.
“Have you found anything new?” Nassir asked Amira.
“I have finally finished retrieving the amulets and cataloging all the cartouches of his name. They correspond with the figure recorded on the larger plaques; forty. It seems he was the fortieth Imhotep of the High Priesthood.”
“Well done, Amira,” praised Nassir, “keep going and let’s see what else we can find out. The rest of you follow me. I don’t want to waste anymore time. Zohar tells me that they have come to the last of the corridors. The structure is almost fully mapped and cataloged.”
They turned and left the room, re-emerging into the area above the pit. Doctor Nassir then led them into a vestibule and zipped the canvas doorway shut behind them. The stairway into the ground lay before them. It seemed they would be descending into hell itself until the doctor pulled the lever on a generating machine and a series of lights started to turn on lighting the way downwards. Just then, Zohar came running in with his laptop. He must have run all the way from the compound because he was sweating profusely.
“Doctor,” he said, as he worked at catching his breath. He glanced at the others accompanying Nassir. “Hello.”
A round of greetings went up from the group.
“Dr. Nassir, you have to see this,” he said, setting the computer down and lifting the lid. “It’s the Chambers of Ay!”
The group gathered around the laptop and watched the image come up on the monitor. What they saw before them on the screen was amazing. The outer corridor formed a square which was divided into four isosceles triangles by two paths that intersected in the center of it. Inside the square was the shape of a six-pointed star and another perfect square sat in the middle of it.
Nassir pointed to the center square and said, “That’s where we need to go today. If the codex is in here, that’s where we’ll find it.”
Chapter Four
When they reached the central chamber, none of them could believe their eyes. It was a large round room with three antechambers leading off from it. The room was filled with what looked to be scribe’s desks which were loaded with papyrus scrolls and layers upon layers of ancient dust. Nassir took out his two-way radio and pressed the call button.
“Yes, Dr Nassir,” came Amira’s voice over the speaker.
“We have found a room full of scrolls, Amira,” he said. “Bring what you need to have them safely removed to your lab.”
“Yes, doctor,” she replied.
In the first antechamber, they found shelves filled with clay jars with what must have been ink, some that held feathers of many types and lengths, and others with dried reeds. It seemed that it was a supply closet for whoever was using the room as a library or office. The second space had shelves filled with rolls of discolored and rotting cloth and the third had rows and rows of leather scroll tubes tucked neatly onto racks that hung on the walls. Above those racks was another shelf that contained wooden rods to which the papyrus scrolls would have been attached before being rolled up and stored in one of the leather tubes. Among the rods was an ornately carved wooden box that caught Nassir’s eye.
He stretched up to the shelf and carefully brought the box to the ground.
“We’ve searched the entire place, Chyna,” he said. “Every room and corner of these chambers has been cleared and we have not found the codex. This must be it, if it is here at all.”
Carefully he lifted the lid of the box; they all held their breath to see what it contained. There was a sigh of disappointment as they saw the box appeared to be empty but Nassir paused for a moment focusing his eyes in the poor light. He reached inside it and took out a clay tablet. Zohar rushed forward with the lantern as he held it up to the light.
Suddenly, Nassir began to laugh. They were all stunned and silently waited for him to fill them in on the joke.
“She took it!” he cried out in amusement. “I cannot believe it; Ankhesenamun took the codex from this very box and hid it from Ay. This tablet bears the first clue of the location of the lost Book of Life.”
He took a handkerchief from his pocket and wrapped the fragile piece of clay in it, handing it to Oscar.
“This is now officially a mystery, Miss Stone; a scavenger hunt, if you will,” he said to Chyna. “As of now, my work is to ensure that the mummy and the other artifacts are properly studied and then handed over to the relevant authorities. And I will leave the adventuring to you and your team.”
***
Above ground, Chyna and her team freshened up and grabbed some falafel from the mess hall for lunch before they met up in their designated office space. It was relaxing to be in the air conditioning, but they now had an official mystery to solve.
Lana was pulling push pins and string fro
m the supply closet while Chyna unrolled the huge map of ancient Egypt that Dr. Nassir had given them. They pinned it to the wall and marked the city of Luxor, the Chambers of Ay, Amarna and Qena.
“What could have happened to make her take the codex from its hiding place?” Lana asked.
“Nassir told us that Ankhesenamun was imprisoned in those chambers by Ay, who was her new husband and the pharaoh,” replied Chyna. “So I think the question goes a little further back than that. The real question is what was Ankhesenamun doing locked up in those rooms?”
After tapping for several minutes on her computer, Lana went over to the laser printer, picked up a few pieces of paper and then returned to the wall. She pinned up a picture of Tutankhamun and Ankhesenamun side by side at the top. Then she took a black Sharpie and drew an ‘X’ over the picture of the pharaoh.
“So her husband dies,” Lana said. “What does the Queen do next?”
“According to the history books,’ Chyna responded, “there are two men at court who want to marry the princess. The first is her grandmother’s brother, Ay. He is not of the royal family. His father was a wealthy landowner who snagged a princess for a wife. He did become quite prominent at the court of Amenhotep III, just by being his brother-in-law.”
“And the second?” Lana asked, as she pinned up a picture of Ay.
“The second was Horemheb, Tutankhamun’s General and a commoner.”
Chyna flipped through the notes that Dr. Nassir had provided her in the dossier while Lana placed the last picture on the wall.
