Egyptian Timewave

Chapter 54

Abayomi finishes packing away their lunches in the cooler and moves to make her way towards her normal tent, frowning when her dad places a hand on her arm.

"What is it, Baba? Do you need something?" Her mind flashes back to what happened earlier that week. "Or are you going to talk about the incident again?"

"No, no. You could head on in to your work if you'd like, but I know that you're drifting into a lull and I also know that today the plan is to move all the remaining things out of the first room to start opening the burial chamber for tomorrow. I thought that you might want to check the room out before that is really underway, since I know you haven't seen it yet."

Abayomi's eyes widen. "You're asking if I want to go inside the first room? Is that even a question, Baba? Of course I want to check it out!"

Her dad laughs. "I thought you would. Come on."

She tags along behind him as they make the quick walk from the tents to the tomb itself, ducking around people as they bustle from dig site to dig site. The entrance to their tomb is still empty, Abayomi and her dad had arrived quite early today, but she has no doubt that it will soon be bustling with activity.

Unlike the last time Abayomi entered the tomb, it no longer has the rocks and rubble strewn over the floor and waiting to twist someone's ankle. The stone floor is completely smooth now, or as smooth as it can be. It's nowhere near smooth enough for someone to slip on, pockmarked and sandpaper rough from the tools that made it in the first place.

Farther on, the doorway into the main chamber stands empty of any obstruction, dark and waiting for them to pass through it. Abayomi can see the darker shadows within that are the contents of the room, though there is no definition to them until she shines her flashlight that way.

The first thing the light catches is the nai that rests against the wall on the other side of the room, the gold mouthpiece glinting in the light. As she looks at the instrument, Abayomi can hear the strains of Anippe's favorite song to play, along with the laughter that comes with Abayomi's lessons. She shakes her head slightly to pull out of the memories, quickly wiping away a tear before her dad can notice it.

In front of the nai is a familiar chest, still closed. Abayomi doesn't know if it's because it's deteriorated enough that they don't want to risk destroying it by opening it, if it's empty, or if they opened it and just closed it after examining the contents. She can't help but hope that Anippe's jewelry isn't in there, particularly those special pieces she had received from her mother.

Logically, Abayomi knows they would likely be there, those would be the sort of trinkets Anippe would be buried with. But she remembers how even she, someone Anippe knew and cared for, wasn't allowed to touch those pieces. Abayomi is sure that even knowing that the tomb is being excavated to learn about the past, Anippe would be nowhere near comfortable with having strangers touch her most prized possessions.

She shakes her head. Abayomi keeps looking at this room from the eyes of Anippe's friend, but she should also be viewing it through the eyes of an archaeologist. Unlike the pictures Abayomi has seen of Tutankhamen's tomb, while this one is full it is not cluttered. You can move around, instead of climbing over piles of objects that were shoved in before sealing the tomb.

Likely because they actually had time to prepare this tomb, instead of having to use someone else's. Or at least Abayomi hopes it's because they had the time to prepare Anippe's tomb, she hopes Anippe had a good long life. There are several chairs in the room, Abayomi can also see some of Anippe's headrests off to the side.

She squints at a gleam of silver from atop another chest. Is that- Abayomi bites back a snort of laughter. Yes, it's what she thinks it is. Anippe's knife. The dagger is sitting in plain view, so at odds with how Anippe had always kept it tucked beneath her bed. She drifts closer to it, analyzing the blade.

The handle is well-worn and scuffed, the blade scratched and nicked in a few spots. It's had a lot of use out of it. Abayomi smiles at it. She can see the dark spots in the handle where Anippe's fingers always rested, finding the same spots time and time again. She jolts slightly when sound echoes from behind her. Abayomi had forgotten that she wasn't alone in the room. She looks back at her father. He is picking his way around a chest toward her.

"What are you looking at, Aya?"

She nods to the knife. "Do you see that? The tomb owner must have used it often."

"Or practiced with it."

Abayomi shakes her head. If only, but the marks on the blade say otherwise. It's seen defensive use. "No, it's scratched and dinged. The blade has been in combat, more than once." She wishes she knew what troubles Anippe had come across to have used it so often.

"And you said this tomb belonged to a woman?"

"Yes Baba, that's what the hieroglyphs on the door and seal ring indicate."

"Interesting. I think I would like whoever this woman was. I'm sure you would."

Abayomi smiles. He's not wrong. "Did anything catch your attention, Baba?"

"Several things, actually. Let me show you."

She lets her dad lead her around the room, pointing to object after object. Some she recognizes, some that either Anippe didn't use while Abayomi was with her or they were gained after Abayomi's departure.
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What do you think of the tomb so far?