CHAPTER NINETEEN

Piper sits up in the cockpit, gliding the blimp through the clouds. Ardeth, Evelyn and Jonathan sit around a warm, glowing barrel of fire.

"I saw her tonight. The woman you talk about".

"Amunet. Three thousand years ago the same night Imhotep was sentenced to death. Amunet was there when it happened, so between Nefertiri and Amunet you two had the same vision tonight. She knows her past, so did you".

Jonathan leans into Ardeth. "I don't suppose there's an inheritance we should know about?" Ardeth just smiles and looks back at Evelyn.

"Because of Amunet, Imhotep was accused, and then cursed for all time".

"No wonder he wants my sister so badly".

Ardeth looks at Jonathan. "Now do you believe, my friends? Ancient is not the thing we could play on, once you are stuck with the ancient curse it will be forever in your life. I've been advising you two because of this". Jonathan gives Ardeth a sarcastic look.

"Right. My sister is a reincarnated princess and I'm just a dumb english man. Coincidence".

"My friend, there is a fine line between coincidence, and Fate". Jonathan shrugs it off. "Cause is why.. precaution what you're doing".

Tent. Night. Inside a tent, Dakota paces in a circle and that's all he can do because Imhotep was staying outside angrily toward Lock-Nah and the others who are trying to hurt Dakota.

He could hear Imhotep screaming and shouting. Then Dakota hears nothing. Lock-Nah rips the flap back and enters.

"When the time comes, I will truly enjoy killing you".

Dakota holds up the bracelet. Lock-Nah freezes in his tracks, Dakota smiles.

"But until that time you better be a little nicer to me. Now where's my water?" Lock-Nah angrily hands Dakota a cup of water. "No ice?"

Lock-Nah snarls and storms out of the tent. Dakota smiles to himself, then looks around to see if anyone's watching him.

He gets down on his hands and knees, spills the cup of water onto a pile of sand and starts playing with it. It was Imhotep's ideas. So then Evelyn could track their trace.

"What are you doing?" he asked, seeing Dakota begin to do something with that sand. "Oh. I forgot I was the one asking you for that (Imhotep point at the sand) your mother needed the most". Imhotep took a seat. "They could kill you today".

"My fault actually. I believe in the word of man".

"You don't have to believe anything they say about me trying to kill you. I won't kill you, you know that. If I want to kill, why do I bother myself to save you from that bracelet?"

Dakota stops, looking up at Imhotep. "After you finish with that sand, make sure no one will see that''. Imhotep the storm out from the tent.

Karnak temple. Day. The train sits idle by the side of the great temple as Ardeth stealthily moves through the ruins, guns up. He stops and signals Jonathan, who nods and dashes across the sand and up to the train.

Ardeth sticks his gun into the parlor car. It's empty. Jonathan throws open the door to Imhotep's boxcar. It's also empty. The last bit of sand drains out of the top of the hourglass. Ardeth is crushed.

"We're too late". Ardeth looks out across the deserted temple complex. "They're gone. We've lost them!"

"JONATHAN!" Both men race across the sand as they hear Evelyn and up to a little boy's tie hanging from a branch. "Look, this is a Dakota tie and he made a little sand castle".

Tilt down from the tie to the ground. The tie is actually pointing to a tiny sand temple on the ground. Intricately shaped. Very distinctive. It's what Dakota was working on.

"It's the Temple Island of Philae (she smiles at Ardeth) They're going to the Island of Philae".

Ardeth nods. "Dakota really wants us to find this". their eyes met. "Let's go!"

A tiny scrap of paper with Arabic writing being rolled up and stuck into a tiny tube. The tube is magnetically stuck to the leg of Horus the falcon.

Ardeth Bey launches Horus, who flies off over the temple. On the tiny sand temple, then we do a perfect match dissolve to the island of Philae, as the blimp touches down.

Dakota's jacket, lying on the ground. Ardeth bends down and picks it up, underneath it is another tiny sand temple, a cone shaped mountain with four Collcssi.

Evy grins. "The great temple of Abu Simbel".

Again, Ardeth launches Horus, who flies away. On the tiny Abu Simbel sand castle, then match dissolve to the great temple of Abu Simbel as the blimp lifts off from it. Horus flies right past.

Nubian desert. Day. Way off in the distance, traversing a huge sand dune, is a caravan of sixty men, one woman and one kid on camels.

Lock-Nah bearing the cry of a falcon. A knowing look crosses his face. His eyes scan the desert for Horus.

Desert. Day. Horus lands on the arm of a Medjai Commander. Behind him are a hundred warriors on horseback including Babu.

The Commander removes the note from the tube and read it, then call out.. "La Nile Azurl!"

As the Commander and his men move out, we crane up and over the dune behind them, to reveal ten thousand more warriors.

Nile Canyons. The blimp floats through deep canyons, following a river. A bald head steps into the extreme foreground, watching the blimp as it vanishes around a canyon corner.

It's Imhotep.

Evelyn, Jonathan and Ardeth stare at the river. "That's the blue nile down there. We're out of Egypt now". said Ardeth.

"Yes, but we're still in ancient Egypt".

"How are we ever going to find them in this maze of canyons?" ask Jonathan.

Dakota sits by the edge of the water, surreptitiously making a design in the wet sand. A boot suddenly stomps on the design. It's Lock-Nah. Be yanks Dakota to his feet, furious.

Imhotep steps up and looks down at the smashed design, then he looks at Dakota and Imhotep turn to Lock-Nah starts speaking ancient Egypt, but to Dakota, it's english.

"Do not touch my son Lock-Nah. You are very clever, little one. I hope your mother and your uncle enjoyed their journey".

Lock-Nah then walks, leaving the father and son behind. Dakota walks to Imhotep. "What are you gonna do to my mum!?"

"Dakota". Imhotep bent his knee at Dakota level. "They think I am leading your mother in here. To gain their trust I had to do something so that they all knew I was trying to kill your mother".

"You can't do this!"

"I promise I will not hurt your mother as bad as your thoughts. Besides, I want to know what that lady is doing behind my back. I believe she prepared something to get your mother killed. This is her chance".

Imhotep looks around. So did Dakota. "See? you wouldn't see that lady around. She's up to something".

What Imhotep thought about Meela was right. She was prepared knowing that the blimp belonged to Evelyn for her ride, and she began doing her own dark magic against Evelyn and Imhotep.

Imhotep turns and wades out into the nile. He starts to raise his arms. A massive wall of water rises up out of the river.

Evelyn, Jonathan and Ardeth Bey are looking out over the bow of the fishing trawler. Suddenly, they hear a loud rumble.

Piper is the first one to look back and see it coming. "What the hell...?"

A massive wall of water crashes down the canyon. Charging right at them. Throwing rocks and boulders out of its way.

Everybody reacts. Ardeth yells at Piper. "Piper! Go Right! Starboard! Starboard Starboard! I don't know what it mean just do it!"

Piper pulls the flame cable and turns the wheel. The blimp accelerates and starts to corner into a smaller side canyon.

A giant face forms inside the massive wall of water. It's imhotep. "That mummy trying to eat us alive!" Jonathan shouts.

He starts to open his huge watery mouth. Piper ignites the afterburners and fires up the hand-made booster rockets, whoosh! flames shoot out the rear of the fishing trawler.

The blimp makes it into the side canyon. The massive wall of water doesn't make the turn. Imhotep's watery face screams in anger as it explodes past the blimp.

Everybody stares back at the big canyon as it recedes. Jonathan is the first one to turn and look forward. His jaw just about hits the floor.

"Uhhhh people!"

Everybody turns to see what Jonathan's seeing. Up ahead, this smaller canyon dumps into a massive bowl shaped canyon filled with an enormous jungle.

Ardeth Bey nods in wonderment. "Ahm Shere".

Jonathan snaps out his telescope and zooms in. Telescope way off across the jungle is the tip of a gold pyramid.

"You bet your ass it is".

And that's when they hear another rumble. Piper looks back. "Son-of-the-gun"

Another massive wall of water is charging down the canyon and coming right at them. Imhotep's crazed, watery face forms inside it. He laughs maniacally.

His huge mouth opens wide to swallow the blimp. Piper kicks the throttle, ignites the afterburners and fires up the booster rockets, giving it all she's got, whoosh! flames shoot out the sides of the boat.

The blimp accelerates out of the canyon, but it's too late. The massive wave of water explodes out of the canyon behind it.

Imhotep's huge watery mouth engulfs the blimp. The blimp crashes down into the jungle along with a massive quantity of water.

"Mum.."

Imhotep staggers out of the Nile, exhausted, his face horribly decayed. He looks at Dakota. Dakota reacts in horror backing away from Imhotep.

"She saved Dakota".

"How can you say that! I saw what you did!"

"Someone overpowers me Dakota. You must understand, it was hers. The lady".

And suddenly Meela showed up, Imhotep saw her exhausted face like him. She approached like nothing happened.

"You two alright? I hear.."

Imhotep smiled. "We're fine. Where have you've been?"

"With the others my lord. Why do you ask?"

Imhotep knew she was lying. He can see her face between the massive water he creates. She tries to kill Evelyn too while Imhotep is just doing his work.

"I should be with them my lord". She bowed and then walked. Dakota looks up.

"My intention to do that was to save your mother from that lady. I admit that massive water was a terrible thing I did. Don't blame me for that Dakota''.

Dakota walks closer to Imhotep. Grit his teeth as he spoke. "If my mum hasn't shown up.. I will not forgive you!"

The blimp is half deflated, the trawler a torn up mess. Evelyn, Jonathan and Ardeth are putting on packs filled with weapons and gear.

He looks at Piper. "That was..."

"Imhotep tried to kill us!" said Evelyn, unbelievably. "He tried to kill us! He tried to kill us!" she screams.

"I thought you rips off my face Evie. Kinda hurt when we are on the boats, left and right.. you know".

Evelyn breath. "I'm gonna go get my son, and then I'm gonna wanna get out quick, so make it work, Piper".

Piper is pacing and ranting angrily. Gently he spoke to Evelyn.

"Lady, you don't understand. It was filled with gas, not hot air. I need gas to get this thing off the ground, where am I gonna get gas around here? Tarzan's Fill 'R Up?"

Jonathan makes sure Piper isn't looking, then he steals the Scepter of Osiris and shoves it into his pack.

"Now I could maybe jerry-rig it to take hot air, but you know how many cubic meters I'd need?!"

Ardeth walks up and slaps him on the back. "If anybody can fill this thing up with hot air, it's you".

Ardeth launches Horus as they head off into the jungle. Horus as he flies up over the canopy. Lock-Nah suddenly appears in the foreground, aiming down the barrel of his rifle. He fires.

Ardeth spins around as he hears the report of a rifle and the cry of a falcon. "Horus!" He staggers forward and stares up into the canopy, now it's Ardeth turn to look devastated, a long beat and then he starts to take off his pack.

"One of Imhotep's men killed Horus. The Army of Anubis will arise from the sands outside of this oasis. I must let the commanders know where it is".

Evelyn gently grabs his arm and stops him. "I need you to help me get my son back!" Ardeth stares at her, sees the look in Evelyn's eyes. "Please?"

"Then first, I shall help you". Evelyn nods in appreciation. Ardeth raises an eyebrow. "And Imhotep?"

"Don't worry, this time I'll never back off. I will face him alone".