Three Wishes: Cairo (23 page)

She was confined to the smallest of rooms with just two small lights off in the distance. It had taken a while before she'd realized that those lights were her own eyes and that she was being held prisoner in her own body.

Enna was exhausted. Even though she no longer had any real control over her own body, she could surely still feel the effects of the non-stop traveling she'd been doing since the horrible scene that had played out several days ago.

One moment she was sparring with Katar and then he had committed the ultimate betrayal and brazenly touched her. Then her shock quickly turned to fear for her life when it became clear that this person was not Katar. When The Other showed his face, the horrifying truth became clear. She was not locked in a physical struggle with Katar, but rather a mental battle with The Other. She was fighting for her very mind and body with a creature who possessed incredible power and she was losing. Alchemy fought her for every finger, every thought and every inch of her body until he slowly began to control her completely. This was not the gentle method he had used on his other victims who had invited him in; this was a brazen attack that no mortal could possibly prepare for. But Enna didn’t go without a fight and she made him earn every morsel that he took from her.

He invaded her body and violated her mind with little regard for her well-being. Taking her body was just the beginning. For a brief instant she felt a connection with the last remnants of Katar. All that was left of him tried to join her and help fight off The Other, but it was no use. Katar was gone. She felt his soul leaving his body and watched the useless shell crumble to the floor like a broken doll. Though she had never had positive feelings for the man that had tormented her through her teen years, no one deserved a fate such as this.

To fight back was futile at this point, so she bore witness as her arms lifted the shell of Katar’s body off the floor with little to no effort and slung him over her right shoulder. As they were walking, she heard the voice, now clearly in her head. “I think there was something you wanted to tell your father? I guess now would be as good a time as any. She gasped as she now carried him to the garden and threw him without care beside the lifeless body of her father. Anger and anguish coursed through her body as she again mounted an offensive to regain her control from this horrible monster. But this fight did not last very long, as the creature inside of her was apparently getting stronger while she grew weaker.

Now despair wracked her body and she screamed as loudly as she could, but none of it escaped through her mouth… it just bounced inside her head. Even her crying was denied to her by The Other, who was now in complete control of her systems. She had lost.

They quickly exited the garden and left the palace via her secret exit and returned to her private hiding spot in the forest.

“We will spend some time here until things calm down a bit,” said Alchemy. “This is a lovely garden, my dear. I am sorry about the death of your father, but it was unavoidable. Your friend Katar started a series of events, but I had to finish them for him because he simply didn’t have what it took. The plan was to rule this kingdom and expand from there, but I fear I might have done my job a little too well. I didn’t really mean to drag you into this and now, I’ve made your face the most sought after in the kingdom. I think that tomorrow evening, we will leave town and head for Cairo under the night sky.”

Enna had very few of her own thoughts still under her control, but she did reason, that for now, it would be best if she hid in the background and didn’t call attention to herself. She’d seen how quickly Katar had been disposed of and she knew that she could be eliminated just as easily. She had to rest and gather her strength for one last assault. She had no real comprehension what she was dealing with; suffice to say, it was a very powerful being that had evil intentions.

No sooner than she had begun her hibernation than she sensed a commotion. When she moved quietly forward in her own brain, she was shocked to see Aladdin lying by the road with a mass of bruises and blood. In that wild panic, she had used all of her will to try and take back the body that was rightfully hers. For a short time, she felt control returning, but then, because she was still simply exhausted, she'd been thwarted by the leech that was now running the show and using up her body's resources.

She was almost certain that her thoughts still belonged only to her, so she mentally rested, gathered her strength and plotted her return to control. No matter what condition Aladdin was in, she really believed that he was still alive. Since the day they'd met, she sensed his strong life force and nothing she'd experienced had led her to believe that his flame had been extinguished. Perhaps it was only wishful thinking, but she knew that until she could get her body back, it didn't really matter what had happened… she'd be no help to anyone.

During the struggle, she had recognized the outskirts of Cairo and knew that she was headed in that direction. She remembered traveling to Cairo with her father when she was a child and again felt a small pang of grief over her inability to even rightly mourn his passing.

She was mortified as the creature bathed her and brushed her hair. Though these were her own hands performing the same tasks she’d always controlled, she still felt used while it was happening, but she didn’t flinch and continued to rest and gather her strength. Then the creature had tortured that nice gentlemen who had done nothing more than feed her and offer her shelter. She just wasn't quite ready to assert herself and also sensed that if she did call attention to this strange cohabitation that she might just be eliminated altogether.

For now, she was satisfied to let her intruder feel like he'd won the battle. But the real war was coming and Enna was gearing up for it. Imprisoned within her own mind, she watched, listened and rested just hoping for another chance to fight.

The lion sprawled over a massive tract of land and attracted quite a large number of onlookers. But as they investigated, Aladdin noticed that most of the traffic was focused in front of the beast. There really weren't many spectators at its rear and toward the pyramids it fronted. Unfortunately, when they reached the hind end of the massive stone beast, they were disappointed to find no openings like the one they'd seen in the front.

“I don't think they'd make this so large and only include one entrance,” said Aladdin. “It doesn't make any sense. They would want airflow and an escape if the main entrance was blocked.”

“Perhaps we have not walked far enough,” said the voice of the Genie. “I suggest we move forward toward that pyramid on the right flank of the beast.”

“The sun is starting to set. Let's walk over there, eat some dinner and then look for an alternative entrance once the sun goes down.”

Though the hike to the first pyramid didn't seem like it would be so far at first glance, they soon realized that the height of the pyramids made them seem like they were immediately behind the lion. But after thirty minutes of walking, Aladdin finally started to make out the details of the smaller pyramid as the sun made its way to the horizon just before it slipped away for the evening. As they had planned, they ate some dates and nuts that they had obtained in yesterday's market trip and then began searching the base of the pyramid.

Like all pyramids, there was a mortuary temple on the outside that had royal statues, a small stone maintenance building, a decorative courtyard, afterlife storage chambers, and presumably, an interior sanctuary. Pyramids were not museums and outsiders were not encouraged to visit. These were holy burial grounds and trespassing was forbidden.

“Look for steps going down and be careful,” said the voice of the Genie.

No sooner had he spoken, than Aladdin noticed a glimmer of firelight through a crack in the large stones the formed the foundation in the pyramid.

"Wait, I see something," said Aladdin. Darius followed his master's eyes and headed for the pyramid base, only to disappear with a yelp seconds later.

“DARIUS,” Aladdin yelled and ran toward where his loyal companion had disappeared.

Soon, he saw why. It was almost an optical illusion where the levels of sand and the base of the pyramid conspired to conceal a narrow pathway that had been cut along the outside foundation of the pyramid. Darius had fallen onto this pathway and was lying motionless.

Aladdin made his way cautiously and as quickly as possible to his friend and began to stroke his head. “Darius, are you okay?”

At the sound of his Aladdin’s voice, the dog got slowly to his feet and began walking in circles, as if making sure he was still working.

“You have to be careful you stupid dog! You scared me half to death.”

Darius nuzzled against his master's hand and the tail found its motion again.

“I think this might be what we’re looking for,” said the Genie. “Let us follow this course and see where it leads.”

Aladdin scanned the base of pyramid until his eyes again found a faint glimmer of light passing through a narrow opening in the rocks.

“There is something inside this pyramid,” he said. “You'd never see it during the day, but at night, I can see the light escaping.”

After another twenty minutes of walking the perimeter below ground level, they found exactly what they were looking for; a crudely hinged door that was completely hidden from normal view. With a firm push and some perseverance, Aladdin was able to gain entry into a dimly lit chamber. It was cooler and damper than anything they'd experienced recently and it felt good to be removed inside. The room didn't appear to be all that large and Aladdin immediately voiced his displeasure.

“I'm in a huge pyramid inside a room that is smaller than my old house. And we're no closer to answers than we were when we set out this morning!”

“Patience, my son. Antechambers in pyramids are never what they seem. These structures were built so that you might enter, but never gain access to the valuables that were stored inside. They were meant to frustrate common criminals from gaining entry to the real treasures they contained.”

“Then they should be quite pleased because I'm frustrated,” uttered Aladdin.

“We are alone in here; rub the lamp and let me investigate,” said the Genie.

Aladdin took the lamp from around his waist and rubbed it and quickly laid it on the table. Within a few spectacular moments, his companion stood by his side. Aladdin still smiled when the Genie appeared.

“Let us see what secrets are hidden within,” said the Genie.

The base of the inner wall was covered in hieroglyphics. Ornate drawings of animals and figures of men were painted about a hand’s width apart in a seemingly random pattern. At the top of the wall a small hole was cut in the rock and the stars were visible through it.

“Ahhh, a Moon-lock,” said the Genie rubbing his chin. “You see, at a certain time of evening, during certain seasons, the moon will shine through that opening you see in the top of this chamber and shine down directly on the secret lever that triggers the doorway to a hidden passageway. It's quite simple when you know the rotations of the moon and the seasonal differences to the pattern. Just a bit of complex mathematics and you can calculate the density and saturation level of the sandstone they used to create this pyramid to better determine the angle you'll need. One need only calculate the height of the moon on any given day to extrapolate the logical location height of the trigger mechanism.”

“Sounds wonderful, but how do we know what precise time we need to wait for?” said Aladdin, with more than a little bit of sarcasm in his voice. “We could wait here all evening and then be a wonderful greeting party when the guards return for their morning shift.”

The Genie was studying the large entry wall and examining the patterns of the drawings. He soon moved with great purpose to a spot in the wall and pressed on a small cutout. With that, a faint shift was heard behind the wall and a small doorway dipped inward. Aladdin stared dumfounded at his companion. “You must have used some sort of special Genie powers because I could never even comprehend what you’ve just done.”

“It's hardly magical, Aladdin,” said the Genie with extreme pleasure on his face. The moonlight could only shine on one wall and this tiny cutout was the only one at a reachable level. Simple.”

“But what about the mathematics and the moon switch?” said Aladdin with quite a bit of awe remaining in his voice.

“I made it up,” the Genie laughed.

Darius had his nose in the small opening and was wagging his tail as he peeked out into the passage.

“So that was just to make you look much smarter than I am?” said Aladdin.

“I don't really need to work that hard to look smarter,” said the Genie. “You make that a very easy task all on your own.”

They both smiled and moved into the dimly lit passageway.

“It looks as if this chamber does not see the kind of traffic that the lion does. It is likely that this is mostly a burial plot at this point. A majority of the valuables would be impossible to reach, so this is probably not as well guarded as in the other structure. We should still be very careful; as I'm sure they would not appreciate our attendance here on any count.” The Genie looked wary but confident.

“Are you safe to be, you know, yourself here?” said Aladdin with a question in his voice.

‘I think we're quite alone; at least for now. I will maintain this form, but at the first sight of trouble, I will return to the lamp.”

“What exactly are we looking for Genie?”

“I would imagine we'd be looking for stairs leading downward.”

“Stairs?” offered Aladdin, “but why?”

“You would need to get below the base layer of sand to find solid rock to tunnel out passages that wouldn't instantly cave in each time the sands shifted. I believe that there may be underground passages which stretch out beneath all of these structures that connect them all. If I'm right, then I think we're looking for a set of stairs facing northwest.”

The Genie's theory proved to be correct, for, as the two colleagues and Darius continued on their path through the narrow tunnel, they saw a series of stairwells cut into the rock heading downward in various directions.

“There seem to be many tunnels carved out, Genie. Where would they all go?” said Aladdin.

“I believe that there is much more to this area than meets the eye, Aladdin. I think it would be quite interesting to spend some time searching these passages. You might be quite enlightened with what you would find.”

“There,” said Aladdin pointing at a series of stairs straight ahead. “You said toward the lion, and if I have been correctly tracking our position; that would be the stairwell we should take.”

“I agree with you. Most of the stairs we’ve been seeing seem to lead under the pyramid but these certainly are heading in the opposite direction. Let's go.”

As they headed downward, it was amazing how much cooler it became. Aladdin hugged himself and rubbed his arms. “At first, this chill felt very good. Now I’m just cold.”

It seemed as if they’d reached the lowest level, as the path no longer slanted down and mostly leveled out. Now they saw another series of tunnels, wider than those they'd just traveled in, branching out in either left or right of their position. They headed left without discussion as they both determined the direction to head toward the lion.

After walking quite some time and watching Darius run ahead and then bark, they saw a series of stairs heading upward. The ascended the stairwell and saw a well lit corridor ahead. They checked the hallway in front of them and then stepped quietly into hallway.

After a few minutes, the Genie stopped.

“It might be wise for me to return to the lamp at this juncture. We're not sure where we are and my appearance would doom us with any guards we might meet.”

Aladdin reached for his belt and then registered a look of fear. “I don't have the lamp. I must have left it lying on the table in the first antechamber. I'm sorry Genie. We should go back and retrieve it.”

“Do not move!” commanded a new voice that shocked Aladdin and caused Darius to issue a low growl from deep within his throat.