Summary: 
After a tour of three levels of basement, Ahmed hurries the Daredevil Girls and Guy back up to the main floor. Once there, he demands they climb an impossibly long set of stairs to the top of the inside of the pyramid. When they balk, he grabs the youngest and smallest, Sally, and holds her at gunpoint. He reasserts his instructions to begin climbing the stairs.

The Story Continues:

"'Okay, chill out,' Bruce said. He stopped in his tracks. 'What tour company did they find you at, Buddy?'

"'Do not try and be humorous with me, young man. Obviously I am more than a tour guide. Mess with me, and I will be forced to use violence.'

"Bruce nodded as we all fell silent. For a long, tense moment, there was no sound, and no one moved. Then, a loud, insistent hissing was heard. We looked down to see Sage bristling with feline rage. Her back was hunched, her mouth open, and every hair on her body stood up in righteous indignation.

"In a flash, Ahmed turned his gun from Sally and pointed it directly at Sage. He fired a shot, but Sage stood her ground. The bullet, intentionally, had missed.

"Sage slowly backed towards the open door of the pyramid, spitting and hissing the entire way. In her squinted eyes was a promise that she would be back. Sage, you see, was no ordinary housecat.

"'Run, Sage,' Sally screamed.

"'Don't worry about the cat,' Ahmed said. He put a strong arm around her, and pulled her off her feet. 'Worry about yourself if your friends don't do as I ask.'

"'Tell us what you want,' I said.

"'I already did. Head up the steps, and no more whimpering. We picked you because you're strong, so stop acting like snivelling children.'

"'Okay, we'll cooperate,' Elizabeth said. Her eyes flashed as much anger as the cat's. 'But put Sally down, and let her walk with us.'

'"No, I don't think so. I'll keep her to ensure you keep your word. Now let's go, all of you.'

"Sally didn't whine or complain, but she did look afraid, and so we followed the maniacal tour guide up the long steps.

"I can't begin to tell you how we managed to reach the top, but we did. The steps were steeper and more exhausting than any we had encountered so far. Ahmed walked behind us, carrying Sally in a grip so tight she was having difficulty breathing. About two thirds of the way there, she passed out, and hung limply in his arms. With the gun held tightly in his other fist, there was little we could do but follow his instructions.

"Once at the top, we saw just one door, which was standing open. We literally fell through onto a cold stone floor.

"'Get up,' Ahmed demanded, dropping Sally beside us, 'and take your places at the theater. The film is about to begin.'

"Wearily, we struggled to our feet and over to the cushioned seats. Sally, whose pale little face rested on the cold floor, remained behind. I didn't even have the strength to lift her. At least she wouldn't have to see whatever film Ahmed had planned.

"Tired beyond belief, we were grateful for the chance to sit down. Quickly, the light dimmed and the screen in front lit up. The likenesses of Akhenaten and Nefertiti appeared, as before, in all their god-like glory. 

"'I hope this isn't the same film,' Elizabeth whispered. 'Otherwise our boy, Ahmed, has just gone to a lot of trouble for nothing.'

"'Hush and watch,' Tabby warned. 'I want to see what he's gone to so much trouble to show us.'

"We did hush, and we did watch, and what we saw was nothing short of ancient scandal.

"According to the film, Akhenaten was murdered by a rival, Ay, who ended up in power after he managed to do away with a series of other rulers. The first of these, Nefertiti, was Akhenaten's beloved wife. She was murdered after serving only a few years as Pharaoh, but not before she gave birth, in secret, to a boy named, Akhenaten II. She sent her son to live in anonymity with his Nubian half sister until he could take back his father's throne. It never happened. He, too, was murdered, and his body entombed in a wall.

"The film faded to a shadowy image of a man dressed in Pharaoh attire. The narrator's voice boomed out, making us jump in our seats. 

"'I give you now,' it said. 'Akhenaten II, returned from the grave, reborn and renewed.'

"The shadowy figure disappeared and was replaced by a strong, very familiar, young man.'

"The lights came back on, and Ahmed strode into the room. He walked up to the stage dressed as a Pharaoh, and holding a crook and flail in his hand.

"'Any questions?' 

"'Only one,' I said. 'Who are you, really?'