In the back of the opening lay a jumble of discoloured bones and rags. What appeared to be the remains of reed torches jutted from ornate iron sconces in the walls above the pile. A fine, stagnant smelling dust hung in the air about the entrance giving everything a gauzy appearance. Karl ruffled through his pack and retrieved a long flashlight and pulling himself up into the entrance, he shone it about the interior, settling on a section of passage covered in brightly coloured drawings and hieroglyphics. One by one the others climbed up after him. Even Massam and Oura could not resist the pull of such an intriguing discovery. Only Sadam refused to enter and withdrew to a more discrete distance. The drawings showed the familiar renditions of a royal personage being attended by rows of kneeling servants, carrying a variety of, what looked like, bowls of foodstuffs. Above the image of the king, a serpent coiled about a winged staff with a sun symbol mounted on the top and displaying the radiating lines that indicated light or heat.

Karl was mesmerized as he traced each glyph lovingly with his trembling fingers. "I believe what we're looking at here is a history of the life of this tomb's occupant. See these symbols," he pointed to various carvings in the wall, "they definitely indicate the passage of time. I've seen these at other sites."

"Pretty unimaginative artist if you ask me," Stone commented.

"It's classic Egyptian depiction. All human figures were shown in profile. Never two-dimensional. Only the face looked forward, see the eyes are both on what you might consider the side of the head?"

Stone grunted and turned his attention to the pile of bones, bending down to examine the sand around them. When he stood up he called to the professor, holding out an object to him.

You might find this interesting professor."

Karl turned back and took the object from him, his eyes widening and his mouth falling open. "It's a Canopic jar! Just like the one we have. Look, there's the same cartouche on the lid! And it matches that symbol over the carving of the king on the wall there! This is amazing!"

"This smacks eerily of Amin's legend," Melanie said, moving closer to Stone and hesitantly touching his sleeve.

Karl walked around the skeletons on the floor and flashed his light around the walls above them.

"Look here. These marks on the walls. These poor devils must have been frantically trying to claw their way out after being sealed in. Not a pleasant picture." He knelt down and did a quick count of the skulls. "And look! Here's another jar and another! Seven. Seven men. Amin's tale told of twelve slaves didn't it?"

"Perhaps the others are inside somewhere," Oura offered, shivering at the prospect of how horribly they must have died.

"We need to record all this," Karl said, straightening up, "Mel, get the camera from the pack and start shooting. Start with the stone and outside the entrance. Get some shots from across the wadi. Try and show the complete form of the facade if you can, then come in here and get all this," he waved his hand around the immediate area. "We'll go a little further inside and get an idea of the layout."

"I don't want to be out here alone," she complained, twisting the material of Stone's shirtsleeve. Catching the rise of his eyebrows, she hastily removed her hand and jumped back down out of the opening to get the camera.

"I'll stay," Oura volunteered, "I'd rather not go any further just yet anyway, besides, Sadam is still outside."

Karl nodded his agreement and looked to Melanie questioningly.

"That's fine with me. Just don't get too far out of sight."

The three men proceeded single file, slowly down the tunnel leading from the entrance. The dusty, hard packed ground fell away in a gradual slope, and the tunnel narrowed to about two and one half feet wide. The professor played his light along the walls muttering to himself, in awe of the abundant carvings and drawings on each side.

"This is most unusual. As a rule you don't find the passages decorated like this." He stopped and leaned closer to the wall, "See here. These drawings all seem to indicate a series of bodies. And look! Between them are the same time symbols we saw in the entryway." Massam and Stone tried to follow the professor's implications, unsure of what he wanted them to see. Karl played his light further along the wall and stopped short, with a gasp of amazement. "My god! Do you see this? Look at this drawing!" The three men huddled close about the circle of light on the tunnel wall.

"What are we looking at?" Stone asked.

"This! This depiction right here." He traced a carving with his fingers showing a man upside down, with a straight line extending upward from his feet. Below was a rectangle with a circle on top, filled with short, wavy lines. Standing beside this shape, was another man with a longer wavy line coming from his hand. A series of symbols stood off to the left, one of which was a staff with a sunburst on the top. "This is incredible!"

"What is? What are you showing us?" Stone's voice seemed to thud off the ceiling of the tunnel with a dull, dead sound.

"Remember Amin's tale about the priest who was found in the well? This is a depiction of that event."

Massam uttered a low moan and glanced about the confined space nervously.

"Aw professor, how do you know that? I mean, c'mon."

"For heaven's sake Stone. Look at it. Even a school boy could interpret this." Without waiting to debate, Karl moved further down the tunnel, giving each picture a brief examination.

At one point Stone took out his lighter and held it up to one of the reed torches still in their sconces. "Hey, look! It still works!" An eerie yellowish glow quivered in the narrow space, creating sinister shadows on their faces. The harsh, acrid smell of the smoke made their eyes water.

"It's not surprising," Karl said, "the oxygen wouldn't have lasted that long so there's still ample resin left to burn. Bring it along and light some others."

They continued slowly down the passage in a cramped single file, Massam shuffling as close to the professor as possible. Pulling a face and coughing, Stone continued lighting several of the torches along the way, until they reached a split in the tunnel. One passage angled off to the left while another turned an abrupt ninety degrees to the right.

Except for an occasional groan, Massam had remained quiet to this point, but Stone noticed his friend's increasing nervousness and he caught a glimpse of Massam's hand on the hilt of his dagger. Feeling the hair rise slightly on his neck, he withdrew his revolver and held it down by his side."Hmm. A dilemma. Which way to go?" Karl shone the light down both passages, watching as the darkness swallowed the beam, revealing nothing. He turned his attention to the hieroglyphics on the wall and tried to find a clue in their images."Maybe we should just go a little way in both directions. Maybe see if we can find more torches to light," Stone suggested.

Karl wasn't listening, his attention was fixed on another drawing a short distance along the passage to the right. This one showed a prone figure with a line protruding from the body. Another, larger rectangle sat just above and off to the left. His stomach knotted with the realization of what the drawing showed, and he made the quick decision of not describing it to the others. Massam held up his hand and seemed to be smelling the tepid, smoky air.

"What is it pal?"

"A breeze, I think. Something is disturbing the air," he paused again, turning his head, "down there." Massam pointed to the passage on the right.

"Yeah?" Stone squeezed past and held his arm out as still as possible, watching as the flame flickered and danced ever so slightly. "Yeah. You're right. Look at that."

Karl walked several yards down the tunnel playing the light all around. "There's another torch here Stone, come and see if it lights." The ancient torch flared alive but dwindled to a meager glow, emitting a smoky hiss. Karl moved further along the tunnel in the wavering pool of weak light. He aimed his flashlight into the darkness beyond and halted, straining his eyes to pick out its secrets.

"Bring your torch up here, I think I see something." Stone moved up just in back of the professor with Massam close behind.

"There. Look. It's a panel in the wall. Partially open. That must be where the breeze is coming from."

They went forward cautiously, silent except for the hiss of their tense breathing. The panel was about the size of a door and stood ajar about six inches. Karl shone his light through the opening and waved it around.

"It's a larger room. Some kind of chamber. I think we should go in."

Stone looked back at the stern face of Massam, gave him a wink and smiled, then turned, leaning past the professor, shoved against the stone panel. It swung back immediately with a soft whoosh, exposing a large chamber filled with irregularly shaped shadows. Stepping through the opening, the torch light revealed a large, high room, the walls smooth and covered in scenes depicting the funerary cult, and the preparation of the tomb for the benefit of the deceased.

*****

Snake Eyes slid down the gully and huddled down beside Max. "They've found something. A tomb I think. I watched them pull a huge rock out of the wall and go inside."

Max leaned back as the panting Arab blasted him with a puff of foul breath. "Are they all in there now?"

"All but the two women and one Bedouin. They're outside taking pictures of the area."

"Baddu says the other Bedouin is watching the camp. He's up top now keeping an eye on him." Max squatted, absently scratching a stick in the dirt. "This might be the time to make our move." He tapped the stick a few times then tossed it aside, standing up. "Get up top and tell Baddu I want you to take out the one in the camp now."

The young thug grinned and drew out his knife, running a filthy finger along the gleaming blade, "As you wish effendi." He rose up and scrambled silently up the gully to the plateau.