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So if you want daily updates and early access, feel free to join my Patreon.Your support really helps keep me motivated to write faster.
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*****
After two minutes, they were all running.
And who could blame them? After hearing a scream like that — raw, piercing, and way too close — no one in their right mind would've stayed to find out what made it.
"Dan—" Evelyn called out between breaths, keeping close behind him. "Who… who do you think screamed like that?"
Her voice trembled slightly. She could still hear it — that awful, inhuman wail ringing in her ears, crawling down her spine.
Daniel didn't slow down. "I can definitely say it wasn't human," he said, his tone flat but edged with tension.
O'Connell glanced sideways at him as they ran. "You saw something, didn't you?" he pressed. "You looked like you did back there."
"No," he said quickly. "But I can imagine what it was." He looked ahead, scanning the flickering light ahead of them. "And if we ever do come face to face with it—" he gave a grim, humorless smirk— "our chances of survival aren't great."
"Don't tell me, mate… it's a mummy risen from the dead, yeah?" Jonathan said, trying to force a laugh — anything to break the tension.
But Daniel didn't even crack a smile. His expression only grew darker, his eyes fixed on ahead.
That silence was worse than any answer.
Jonathan swallowed hard, his weak grin fading.
"Bloody hell…" he muttered under his breath. "I was kinda hoping you'd laugh."
Daniel didn't. He just kept walking — faster.
And that, more than anything, made Jonathan even more scared.
The group kept running, their footsteps thudding through the narrow passage, torches flickering wildly from the rush of air.
Then, rounding a corner—
BAM!
They almost collided head-on with another group sprinting from the opposite direction. Sand and echoes exploded everywhere.
"AHHHHHHHHH!" someone screamed.
"WHAT THE HELL—!"
Both groups froze mid-run, weapons half-raised, hearts pounding. For a few seconds, the tunnel was pure chaos — shouting, dust, and overlapping panic.
Then Daniel blinked, realizing who they were looking at. "The Americans?!"
One of the Americans — Daniels thought it was Burns — yelped, "Bloody Christ, you scared the life outta us!"
"You scared us!" Jonathan shot back, still clutching his chest. "You came running out of nowhere!"
Evelyn's grip on the golden book tightened. "What happened to you?" she demanded.
The Americans looked pale, terrified. One of them stammered, "We— we saw something move down there! It wasn't human!"
Daniel's eyes darted between them, counting heads. Something felt off.
"Wait," he said, frowning. "Where's that guy — the one with the cowboy getup?"
Among the three Americans, one was missing.
The man with glasses swallowed hard, his face as white as the sand on the floor. "Isaac... he—he was caught by this... mummy-like thing. It grabbed him, and—" his voice cracked, "it sucked the life right out of him! He just... dried up!"
Jonathan's eyes went wide. "Oh, bloody hell…" he whispered, taking a step back.
Evelyn stared, trying to process it. "Suck the life out of him?" she repeated, half in disbelief.
Her rational mind wanted to dismiss it — mummies, curses, that was all nonsense. But the terror on their faces... it wasn't something you could fake.
The silence that followed was heavy — the kind that made your heartbeat sound too loud.
Daniel finally spoke, his tone grim. "If that's true... then we've got a bigger problem than I thought."
Burns swallowed hard, gripping his revolver. "Do you—do you know what that thing is?"
Daniel shot him a sharp look. "Fuck your questions. If you want to survive, run. Don't look back."
No one argued. Fear in his voice was enough.
Daniel grabbed Evelyn's arm, pulling her forward. Jonathan was already sprinting, clutching his hat. The Americans stumbled after them
They were still running when the first tremor hit.
The ground shuddered beneath their boots, sending dust raining from the ceiling. Evelyn nearly tripped, catching herself on Daniel's arm.
"What the hell was that?" Jonathan gasped.
Daniel slowed, instincts screaming. The air had changed — heavier, colder. A low, guttural rumble rolled through the earth, like something ancient was stirring beneath them.
Then, with a violent crack, the ground split open.
"Move back!" Daniel barked — but before anyone could react, the floor erupted.
From the gaping fissure, hands clawed their way out — enormous, blackened things with claws like obsidian knives. One hand was followed by another… and then another.
Within seconds, the tomb floor was crawling with monstrous shapes dragging themselves free from the sand.
Nine-foot-tall figures emerged one by one, towering over the humans.
Their bodies were sinewy and wrapped in decayed bandages, the leathery skin stretched tight over corded muscles.
Golden armor clung to their torsos, dull with age but still gleaming faintly in the flickering torchlight.
Headdresses of ancient kings framed their heads — jackal heads, snarling and elongated, with jaws lined with rows of razor-sharp teeth.
Each carried a massive double-edged axe or long spear, the metal glinting faintly even in the darkness. The stench of ancient death filled the air.
Evelyn clutched the Book tighter. "Dear God…" she whispered.
Jonathan just stared, his voice shaking. "That… that's not possible."
Daniel's face went pale. He knew exactly what he was looking at — and it wasn't supposed to exist. Not here. Not now.
"Fuck me…" Daniel muttered, stepping back slowly, eyes darting between the towering jackal-headed beasts as they rose from the earth one after another. "The Army of Anubis…"
Before anyone could even process what was happening —
RRAAAAGHHHHHHH!
A thunderous jackal roar tore through the chamber, deep and guttural.