Ardeth's Weakness

Camel Rides

Ardeth Bay

          It had been a while since I'd last seen O'Connell and the Carnahans. Their names quickly gained popularity in the papers since we met in Hamunaptra. A lot of tourists had wandered their way out into the desert to come find the City of the Dead wanting to see what Rick, Evelyn and Josephine had uncovered. We stopped most of them before they even got to the city, explaining it was too dangerous. The Medjai threw together some very elaborate schemes to get them to leave. Some simply refused but most got lost in the desert and only little of them perished. The Medjai were on a sort of protective duty for them. It got repetitive day after day. I longed for the adventure I had with O'Connell and the Carnahans. Thoughts of Evelyn haunted my days, but she was a welcome distraction. I often thought of writing to her but always dismissed it immediately, such foolish thoughts.

        Since then I had still been protecting Hamunaptra from any other unwanted visitors and trust me there had been many. Nothing new had happened which was a nice surprise for the Medjai which meant we all got to spend more time with our tribe. Being a chieftain had it's moments but mostly it was relatively boring work, guarding a city that everyone thought was a myth. I decided it would be a good idea to wander into Cairo to find out who had replaced Dr. Bey as curator of the Museum of Antiquities as he had perished on our last conquest.

Evelyn Carnahan

        I thought I would be happier with this situation. Shelf after shelf of historic reference material surrounded the walls of my new office, illuminated by the daylight filtering through the gauzy curtains and the glow of the candelabra sitting on the old desk. I've always had a fondness for candles, as horrid as they are for my tomes and maps. At this point in the afternoon I've considered setting alight any paperwork I don't have the energy for, just as Dr. Bey once set fire to my "treasure map". Only after being contacted by the owner of the Cairo Museum of Antiquities was I informed of the doctor's death. In the streets of the bazar after my sister, Josephine and I were kidnapped by Imhotep, Dr. Bey sacrificed himself so that my brother, Ardeth, and Rick could escape Imhotep's hypnotized army. My promotion was bittersweet; of course I accepted the position, but I will always miss the annoyed scoldings of my old supervisor. I minimally redecorated the office, enough to feel that it was mine but careful of not fully erasing Dr. Bey's presence.

        A brief period before I returned to work, I traveled home to London. Josephine and Rick's engagement inspired them to purchase a house, and they had contacted me wishing I'd help make the decision. Once I arrived I was greeted by my siblings, and Jonathan excitedly informed me that rather than buying a new home, Josephine and Rick wanted my opinion on the four of us living together in the Carnahan Manor. I... wasn't prepared. They wanted us to walk Rick through our parent's home, and live together in the place I.... that my mother died. It was cowardly of me, but I fled. I flew back to Cairo as soon possible. I'm sure Rick was confused by my actions but hopefully Jonathan and Josephine understood. Pulling myself from my thoughts, I glanced down at the stack of paperwork on the desk.

"This cannot be all of it," I muttered. One look into the rear archives answered why all my filing requests to the staff took days longer than necessary. It was a disaster that only I would tackle. Just breathe, I kept thinking. Approaching this logically, I split the paperwork into sections regarding the areas of first; the museum, then the offices, and finally the library. I chose to only work on the first half of the museum sector due to its size easily exceeding 200 pages. Flipping through the forms I realized that I was missing several reports, so I gathered the stack in my arms and walked with haste towards the archives. My glasses rested on my nose and I was reading while walking. Right as I passed by the columns marking the museum entrance, I ran into something solid, promptly knocking the files out of my hands. The papers went flying as I stumbled backwards. I felt hands steady me just before I hit the floor.