The Offering

"You're welcome."

Cameron locked the two heavy gates within the tomb, turned storage and research center, and then exited as well. She nodded to the guards who took up positions at the gate on the tomb entrance, and the fence surrounding it, a little nervous around the silent men and their weapons.

Trent's introduction embarrassed her more than enough, but the reaction to her name made Cameron's cheeks positively burn. Each of the young archaeologists had heard of her and her rapid rise, throughout their education.

When the excitement calmed, Cameron recognized a few of the names as the team reciprocated the introduction. The name of the lone female of the team, Cynthia Hedinger, sparked Cameron's memory.

"You're Tina and James' daughter, aren't you?"

"Yes," the strawberry blonde replied with a smile.

"Did they rub off on you at all?"

"It's why I decided to go into field work. I would have been bored silly having someone try to teach me the basics of conservation that I'd already learned by osmosis."

"Perfect. The conservators will be busy with the paintings. I can use your expertise in going through the pieces in storage." Cameron then addressed everyone and said, "I want to know what you think your strengths are, and what you think everyone else's strengths are. Give it some thought, and then get some sleep. We're going to get down to some serious business starting tomorrow morning."

Δ~~~~~~~~~~Δ

Trent walked into the tomb, wiping sweat from his forehead as he tried to ignore the hot, stagnant air. He found the chamber half empty after only two days. Cameron stood staring at the spot between the Ka statues, the entrance to the burial chamber that she could open soon.

"Having a Howard Carter moment?" He asked.

Cameron chuckled and shook her head. "This door has obviously been resealed in antiquity, so here I sit wondering if the burial is intact. This room's organization and my instincts tell me it is, though."

"It's certainly motivated you to clear this chamber out in a hurry. I didn't think we'd have everything moved out until November."

Cameron turned and examined a chest she hadn't been able to see well because the chair that had just ascended to the surface was in the way. "Sealed. As well preserved as everything is anyway, I can't imagine what wonders we're going to find inside these boxes and chests."

"You haven't opened any of them yet?"

"I've had the conservators and Cynthia setting up to preserve anything we might conceivably find inside. We're going to open the first one tonight after we lock down the tomb."

Trent tore his eyes away from the sight of Cameron's sweat-soaked top clinging to her breasts, the thin bra she wore beneath doing little to hide her nipples. His eyes immediately fell upon one of the Ka statues, even less covered than Cameron. He cleared his throat and pretended to examine a Senet board. "When do you think we'll be ready to open the burial chamber?"

"Another three days to put everything here in storage. We'll need the room, because we'll have the whole team plus several representatives of the Council." She walked up between the Ka statues and placed her palm against the wall.

A second later, she flinched away from the sound of beating wings and feathers brushing against her hair.

"Uh... Cameron, are you okay?"

"Did..." Cameron trailed off and looked around the chamber, almost positive she would see a bird flittering around. "A fly must have buzzed my ear."

Trent shrugged, and then said, "We could be ready to open the burial chamber on Halloween, then. That would play well on the news — once Antiquities will let us tell anyone this is here, anyway."

Cameron scoffed and asked, "That's the first thing you think of?"

"I think we had this discussion the last time we spoke."

"I suppose we did," Cameron responded, shaking her head. The difference in priorities and the resulting conflict was exactly what had torn her relationship with Trent apart.

"Doesn't matter, really. You're in charge, so knowledge will have priority over publicity. I'm man enough to admit that it's probably a good thing, even if I don't like it. I'm going back topside. Let me know how it goes with opening the box tonight."

"I will," Cameron replied, watching his retreating back and wondering if perhaps an old dog can learn new tricks.

Δ~~~~~~~~~~Δ

"Are we ready?" Cameron asked, squinting in the bright light.

Cynthia held up her camera and checked the nearby tables, all weighed down with various preservation fluids and airtight containers. "As ready as we can be."

"Here we go, then," Cameron said with a smile, and picked up her scalpel.

The hardened resin resisted the blade, but thankfully the thin layer didn't require force that would damage the fine wood of the box. The laborious process took long minutes, but finally, Cameron put down the scalpel.

"Moment of truth."

Cynthia checked the video camera recording the process to ensure it wouldn't miss the opening of the box, and then nodded her head, readying the digital camera she held as well.

Cameron opened the box, lifting the lid with just enough pressure to overcome the resistance of friction. She sat the lid down, and marveled at what she saw inside.

Cynthia snapped a picture. "Is that silk?"

"It appears to be," Cameron said, and then picked up a pair of sterilized tweezers and gingerly lifted the silk.

Cynthia covered her mouth and laughed. Cameron laughed as well, no more able to contain her mirth than the younger woman.

Inside the box rested a very realistic ivory phallus.

"Take the picture," Cameron reminded Cynthia between bouts of laughter.

Cynthia managed to stop laughing long enough to snap pictures from several angles. After a few deep breaths, Cameron regained her composure as well.

"Look at how smooth this is," Cameron remarked as she gently lifted the dildo from its case. The carved handle, initially still hidden beneath the silk, left little doubt as to the function of the phallus. "There has to be a royal connection here. There's no way even a high-ranking priestess could possibly afford artisans of this caliber."

"So much for modern technology," Cynthia quipped as she snapped another picture. "I know mine isn't half as nice as that."

Cameron chuckled. "Mine either."

After a few minutes of taking notes and pictures, Cameron returned the ancient sex toy to its box and replaced the lid. She then deposited the entire box in a tub and sealed the lid to keep out moisture.

"Shall we do another?" Cameron asked.

"Absolutely," Cynthia agreed.

Cameron felt a flash of self-consciousness when her eyes fell on Cynthia's perky breasts, well outlined by the thin top she wore. As they worked alone, Cameron had thought she'd noticed the blonde looking at her as well.

Cameron hadn't even thought about the incident in years, but the paintings of the tomb and the close work with Cynthia served to consistently remind her of a short relationship she'd fallen into during college. Just before she met Trent, she and her roommate had progressed beyond friendship into something more. Though the relationship had gone no farther than kissing and touching, the feelings had disturbed her enough to cause her to turn sharply the other way.

Now, those feelings were once more emerging, and carried with them a far stronger sexual attraction than she'd previously experienced.

Cameron took a deep breath and hoped that Cynthia wouldn't notice the stiffness of her nipples as she returned with another of the sealed boxes — yet some part of her hoped Cynthia would notice, as well.

Δ~~~~~~~~~~Δ

Acting on a suggestion from Abasi, Cameron stood in the small chamber between the tombs of Emuishere and Djeserit. She took notes as she translated the hieroglyphs lining the walls and decorating the coffins.

The work thankfully distracted her from her increasingly disturbing thoughts and dreams about Cynthia.

The script told an incredible story, giving great detail about a break-in to the tomb prior to the one after Emuishere's burial, confirming Cameron's suspicions. The thieves had entered while work continued on decorating Emuishere's tomb, bypassing the many treasures in the preceding chambers to seek out the burial chamber of the priestess.

The group had entered the tomb with profit as a secondary goal. The men believed that Djeserit represented a heresy, and meant to punish her by desecration. According to the text, the men had succeeded in reaching Djeserit's mummy, but had no opportunity to violate her corpse.

The six women entombed here, led by Emuishere, acted upon what the text described as a wail of despair from Djeserit's Ba and Ka, their blessed union as Akh destroyed by the penetration of the thieves. Two of the women died in the process of holding off the thieves until necropolis priests arrived to take the men into custody.

Misfortune visited the thieves and their families while the violators awaited judgement, described as the anger of the gods and Djeserit. Everything from boils to plagues of locusts afflicted those associated with the desecration of the tomb. The text almost blissfully described the horrific deaths of the thieves — their genitalia cut off and fed to the crocodiles of the Nile with great public ceremony. The men's names were erased from history and their bodies left to rot, forever denying them a place in the afterlife.

The story did not end there, however. Even restoring the burial to pristine condition did not allow Djeserit's Ba and Ka to achieve joining as Akh. Emuishere and the four remaining women launched into a campaign of prayer and offerings at the altar. Finally, Djeserit's Ba visited the women and communed with them, one and all, before rejoining with her Ka and returning to the afterlife.

The six women, low born and poor, earned a place in the tomb, and riches in the afterlife. The text on one of the coffins revealed that the last of the six committed suicide on the day Emuishere died, to ensure that she did not lose her place in the tomb.

The value of the account to history was incredible, and represented but a tiny measure of the knowledge encrypted in the tomb's texts and artifacts. Cameron stood before the last coffin, gazing down in awe at the mummy of a woman who had made the ultimate sacrifice to ensure her place in the afterlife.

"We're ready to move the final bedframe," Trent said from the entrance to the chamber.

"I'll be right there," Cameron responded with a smile, knowing that with the chamber before Djeserit's burial chamber empty, she would open that holy-of-holies on the morrow, likely tapping into another font of ancient knowledge beyond her wildest dreams.

Δ~~~~~~~~~~Δ

Though people packed the chamber behind her, the focus of Cameron's world lay in the hammer and chisel in her hand, pressed against the sealed doorway to the burial chamber. She didn't notice the thickness of the air, heavy with the scent of sweat, or the almost unbearable heat, made worse by the crowd filling the chamber. Believing she'd given everyone enough time to prepare their cameras, she struck the chisel.

The ringing sound reverberated throughout the chamber, loud and offensive to Cameron's ears. She struck the chisel again, harder this time, and the tip penetrated the plaster. She could smell the stale air escaping from the chamber beyond, air that had last mingled with the atmosphere thousands of years ago. Her anticipation now swelling, she moved the chisel and hit it again. Four more blows opened a hole about the size of a fist. She lowered the hammer and chisel.

Trent approached and took the tools, replacing them with a flashlight. Cameron turned on the light and leaned in close, peering through one edge of the hole while she shone the light inside with the other.

"What do you see?" someone asked, apparently unable to contain his anxiety.

Cameron pulled back from the hole and wiped a tear from her eye. "At the risk of plagiarization — Wonderful things."

Applause rang out, and Cameron bowed her head to acknowledge it before continuing. "I can see a gilded shrine. The detail is incredible. It can't be more than two or three feet away from the doorway." She gestured to the diggers at the back of the room. "I think I'll let the experts handle this."

The diggers approached, and soon enough, fine powder made the air even more difficult to breathe. The men did their best to suppress the dust by catching the falling plaster in woven baskets, with questionable success.

None felt the urge to leave, however.

More of the gilded shrine within emerged into view with every strike of a chisel. People jostled each other, trying to see beyond the diggers, gasping and whispering in amazement. Finally, the diggers stepped aside.

The shrine depicted the gods and goddesses, as expected, but directly in front of the doorway, the wide eyes of the witnesses beheld something unique. Carved wooden figures of Djeserit and Emuishere — covered in gold and jewels — embraced, their lips pressed together in a kiss, with a two-ended phallus joining them, held in the center by Emuishere.

Cameron fought against the reddening of her cheeks. "Abasi, Trent, will you join me, please?"

"My thanks to you," Abasi said with uncharacteristic excitement in his voice as he approached.

"Thank you, Cameron," Trent agreed when he reached her side, his voice as full of genuine surprised gratitude as Abasi's was with excitement.

The three entered the burial chamber, and almost immediately froze in place. A quiet wail echoed throughout the tomb. Cameron could tell from the reactions of the two men at her side that she hadn't imagined it. A glance behind her showed most of those in the chamber beyond staring back into the tomb, confirming Cameron's estimation of the origin of the sound.

"Happy Halloween," Trent muttered under his breath, prompting an angry stare from Cameron.

Abasi laughed, breaking the tension. "So are the myths of the cinema born — upon the breath of the gods in the desert winds."

"Shall we proceed?" Cameron said with a smile, glad to see that Abasi's words had calmed the crowd.

The gilded shrine indeed filled the chamber, leaving only a narrow walkway to explore the room. The decorations of the shrine were dominated by the most overt depictions of female sexuality yet, with even the goddesses joining in the pleasure with the priestess and her servant. Cameron snapped pictures of the script running all along the shrine, rolling her eyes when she noticed Trent utilizing his own camera on the sexual reliefs.

On the opposite side of the chamber, Cameron saw the door. The seal was intact, the entrance protected by a host of carved goddesses — Bastet the most prominent — and Emuishere. Cameron gasped and said, "Look," pointing to the seal.

"Incredible," Abasi remarked, leaning in close.

Two perfect fingerprints decorated the clay seal. A pair of long, dark hairs likewise protruded from the clay. More hairs lay strewn upon the granite tiled floor.

"Emuishere no doubt mourned here. Few others would have found admittance to this holy-of-holies," Abasi speculated.

Cameron could almost see the bereaved woman kneeling before the shrine — her breasts bared, her hair and face streaked with ashes, wailing as she tore at her hair in mourning. Her voice thick with emotion, Cameron said, "We should preserve everything as quickly as possible before we open the shrine."

All three started as the earth rumbled, shaking the chamber. Cameron could hear gasps and cries of alarm from the adjoining chamber. "Perhaps we should see everyone to the surface," she suggested once the rumbling ceased.

Abasi nodded his head. "Agreed. I will have someone check the integrity of the tomb once everyone is safely above."

"Are you all right?" Someone called into the burial chamber.

"We're fine," Cameron answered. "The shrine and the seals are intact. Everyone head back up, we're coming."

Abasi gestured for Trent and Cameron to follow, the trio watching their step for anything that they might have missed after the discovery of the hairs. Cameron saw the last of the spectators leaving the chamber when she stepped through the doorway of the burial chamber. Another slight tremble from the earth prompted a worried glance from Trent and Abasi. The three fell in behind the now more quickly moving crowd fleeing the tomb.

Cameron could feel tension in the hot air as soon as she emerged into the Egyptian sun. She shielded her eyes, hearing a great deal of murmuring in Arabic, trying to find out what was going on. Her eyes eventually adjusted and she noticed that the local diggers and guards were all universally facing one spot, their faces showing touches of fear.

Cameron followed their gaze and her eyes widened when she beheld the hawk, perched atop the highest point of the nearest tent, staring down on the crowd. Suddenly, the raptor loosed a keen and swooped down into the crowd surrounding the tomb.

Everywhere, people ducked and dodged the hawk as it soared just overhead, screeching as if in accusation. One of the guards nearby Cameron raised his rifle, aiming it at the swooping bird.

Abasi snapped something in his own language, pushing the weapon. The shot rang out anyway, though Abasi had spoiled the soldier's aim.

Cameron scanned the sky, seeking the hawk, but saw no sign of it. With a general panic about to break out, she took charge. "Everyone calm down!"

Abasi repeated the plea in Arabic, and the crowd slowly ceased to shout and cry out at every kiss of the breeze or buzz of an insect.

"We have a lot of work to do, everyone. You know your assignments, so let's get to it. As soon as Abasi's people have declared the tomb safe, I want the photographers ready to begin documenting the shrine. We need conservators ready to preserve some delicate finds as well. We only have a few hours until nightfall, and I want every inch of the shrine and the chamber photographed before we lock up the tomb."

Cameron's calm, forceful directives snapped everyone completely out of their panic. Seemingly grateful for the distraction, everyone turned their attention to following her directions.

"Well done," Abasi remarked, and then gestured to one of the men he'd brought with him. "Ashraf will ensure that the tomb is safe."

"Thank you, Abasi." Cameron then looked around to ensure everyone was making the preparations she'd ordered. Some people still whispered, and a few still bore spooked expressions. "Trent, I think a little relaxation is in order. I know that I said that we have too much to do, but I think you should go ahead with the little Halloween party you suggested."

Trent chuckled nervously and shrugged. "I already have everything here. I've had people bringing things in for a couple of days."

Cameron narrowed her eyes, irritated that he'd decided to go ahead with his plan despite her lack of approval. She sighed and shook her head, deciding that it wasn't worth worrying over, because it had worked out for the best. "Keep the alcohol to a minimum. I don't want everyone so hungover in the morning that they can't work."

"Understood," Trent responded.

Cameron walked to her tent and took a deep breath as soon as she closed the flap behind her. She sat down heavily on her bed and shuddered, her nerves finally getting the better of her. She would never admit it, but the series of coincidences had unnerved her as well. The sound of everyone going about their business outside soon settled her nerves, however.

Cameron chuckled and pulled out the band holding her hair back in a tail, rolling her eyes at her reaction to the hawk. For just a fraction of a second, she'd entertained the thought that the bird was the Ba of Emuishere or Djeserit, come to seek revenge for opening the tomb. She retied her tail and wiped the sweat from her brow, now amused by her unusual descent into superstition.