Under the scorching sun of the desert, a dark-skinned man with big and penetrating eyes, dressed in a white robe, wearing sandals on his feet and a turban on his head, stood  watching over thirty men laborers toiling on a sandstone structure. Beside him, another dark-skinned man, dressed in more plain clothes, lingered.

"We're running out of time, Parennefer. Aton's patience is running thin as we speak", Akhenaton said, irritated.

"The temple will be finished soon, Your Majesty", Parennefer responded.

Parennefer was the Pharaoh Akhenaton's royal butler and advisor since their past lives, when the Egyptian Ruler wreaked havoc throughout the country by abandoning traditional polytheism, centered around gods like Amon-Ra, Osiris and Ma’at, in favor of a single god, Aton, the solar disk.

Even his resurrection through mysterious means hadn't changed the butler's extremely deferent and almost affected demeanor around Akhenaton. However, when dealing with workers or anyone else other than the royal family, Parennefer was ruthless and had no qualms about whipping a servant's back should they waver in their daily obligations.

All this ruthlessness was not without reason, although only the Pharaoh and his lackeys would find it acceptable: they wanted to rebuild Amarna, or how Akhenaton called it, "Akhetaton", the city ruled by him and protected by Aton. The city had been destroyed by Horemheb by the time Akhenaton had passed away more than 3000 years ago, and all the structures sitting there were used as materials for other monuments and buildings. Now Akhenaton was reclaiming those materials in order to rebuild the city he once governed and considered sacred, at the expense of everything unrelated to his beliefs.

Akhenaton was growing irritated with how long the temple had been taking to be completed, even though all workers were getting almost no time to rest and some of them even got whipped a couple of times when the Pharaoh thought they were slacking.

In a rare moment of distraction, Akhenaton looked away from the construction site and towards the city of Cairo. Nefertiti had been away for quite some time now, so he started to feel concerned. The Pharaoh heightened his senses in order to understand what could be happening.

"I sense great disturbance coming from the modern city. Did something happen there?", he asked his butler.

Before Parennefer could answer, a man came running and kneeled before them. "Your Majesty, the Queen is...", the man hesitated.

Akhenaton's eyes glowed silver, in the same fashion as Tut's. "What happened to the Queen, servant? Answer", he commanded.

"Queen Nefertiti has been killed by a man inside the Egyptian Museum", he answered clearly. Akhenaton's expression became rigid as stone, his eyes widened with rage.

Akhenaton's expression became rigid as stone, his eyes widened with rage.

"What man?", Akhenaton vociferated.

"I don't know, Your Majesty", the man said, covering his face with his hands. "Please forgive me. I just received the information".

Akhenaton pulled an ornate khopesh from his waist and delivered a quick but powerful blow to the man's head, splitting it in two.

"Useless servant", the Pharaoh sibilated. "Parennefer", he called with a grave voice.

"Yes, Your Majesty". The butler wasn't even startled by the gory scene he had just witnessed.

"Find the man who killed my wife and bring him to me", Akhenaton commanded, his eyes now glowing with fury.

"As you wish, my King", Parennefer answered and walked away hastily.

"Nefertiti...", he muttered. "How could you let this happen?”, he asked himself as he stared at the Sun, the very object of his faith.

"Whoever desecrates the royal family, protected by the one and only God, deserves nothing but the ultimate punishment", he finally concluded, turning his eyes to the half-built temple in front of him.

 ***

The spell Tutankhamon chanted enveloped the whole Egyptian Museum in a bright yellow light, lasting for a minute or so. During that time, the golden mask melted and disappeared, and Tut unwillingly fell into a trance.

In what seemed to be a very vivid dream, Tut stood in a large room, surrounded by pillars, in what seemed to be the Karnak complex.

Two figures were talking. Tut easily recognized one of them as Ay, his vizier of ancient times, and the other as Horemheb, his general for military affairs. Horemheb spoke first.

"The Pharaoh is too young and fragile, Sir. He won't be able to repair the damage done by his father as he is".

"What do you propose, General? We can't simply remove him from the throne. He is the rightful heir", Ay said.

“Many people, priests included, feel strong aversion to that criminal and his family, even after his death", Horemheb said. "If they haven't tried and killed the young Pharaoh yet, it is only because of our protection".

"So you think letting our guard down on purpose is an option?", Ay asked.

"What I really think is that Egypt needs a strong ruler, Sir", Horemheb said, extending his hand towards the vizier. "Someone who could clear the stain that the enemy of Amon left on our country, rebuild its economy and remind our enemies of how strong and proud we are".

"Changing rulers in a short span of time is a sign of weakness by itself", Ay pondered. "I'm not sure it's a viable option, even if it's caused by a fatal incident".

"If it's an accident, or at least seems like one, I don't think it will damage Egypt's political image that much”, Sir", Horemheb said.

Ay's expression hardened.

"Are you suggesting that we kill the Pharaoh and make it look like an accident, General?".

"I would never suggest that, Sir", Horemheb quickly retorted, bowing his head with his right hand upon his chest. "I'm just worried about the future of our country, that's all".

"Very well. I'll talk to the Young Pharaoh", Ay said. "He listens to me, and I'm sure we can make things work out. There’s no reason to feel despair".

Horemheb bowed again, and Ay directed himself towards the exit. The vizier stopped midway and looked back.

"Get those thoughts out of your head, you hear me, General? No fatal accidents", he said.

"Of course, Vizier Ay", Horemheb winced.

As the vizier left, Horemheb grimaced in disdain.

"Horemheb...", Tut muttered, but got no reaction from the General. "Is this how things happened back in the day? Were you willing to commit treason against me because you thought I was weak? I was willing to make you a Pharaoh one day!".

Again, no response from the General.

"I don't know if this is a dream or a nightmare, but I got enough of this. ENOUGH!", he screamed.

The scenery changed, now showing Ay being crowned as Pharaoh. Horemheb was nowhere to be seen, but Ankhesenamun, Tut's wife, was there beside the new ruler, visibly against her will.

"So did Ay become Pharaoh after my passing? My vizier, the person I trusted the most? And he took my wife as his?", Tut mumbled.

The scenery changed again, now showing a mummy, lying on a sarcophagus, having the Opening of the Mouth ceremony performed on it by Ay himself, wearing a leopard skin. The ritual was done by magically opening the dead Pharaoh's mouth with a stone tool called PeseshKaf, in order to allow the deceased ruler to breathe, eat and drink in the afterlife. Tut recognized the place as his own tomb, and realized the mummy was himself.

The following spell was recited by everyone inside the tomb:

My mouth is opened by Ptah

My mouth's bonds are loosed by my city-god

Thoth has come fully equipped with spells

He loosens the bonds of Sutekh from my mouth

Atum has given me my hands

They are placed as guardians.

My mouth is given to me

My mouth is opened by Ptah

With that chisel of metal

With which he opened the mouth of the gods

I am Sekhmet-Wadjet who dwells in the west of heaven

I am Sahyt among the souls of On.

Without noticing, Tut was reciting the spell along with them, and by the time it ended, he awoke at the exact place he was before, at the Egyptian Museum. The golden mask was nowhere to be seen.

Policemen were pointing guns at him, yelling words he did not understand. All the comotion, added to the things he saw during his trance, caused him to feel dizzy, to the point that he passed out.

***

Kurou walked the streets of Cairo, Riddle in tow, as casually as he could possibly have wanted to. Upon tasting the smell of water coming from the Nile River, he straightened his posture.

"I don't want to see that damn crocodile monster anytime soon", he mumbled, and walked in the opposite direction, spotting a sign that read "Al-Qarafa - Cairo Necropolis".

"What a nice tour, don't you think, little mutt? An undead man and a scavenger, wandering around the local cemetery. Not ironic in the least", he said, laughing. Riddle snorted.

As they walked the streets, Kurou quickly realized the capital of Egypt was much more than an archeological treasure: it was also a huge mass of people, animals and cars all squeezed together in ways he haven’t thought possible.

On the way, there were countless souvenir stores, a supermarket and a few restaurants. He could hear a couple of TVs airing football games, news channels, movies, all in a language he couldn't understand. Arabian, probably.

"What a drag, being stranded in a country where no one understands me. If at least I had a few bucks, I guess the money would do the talking. And since I don't have Tut's powers, no mind-controlling tricks this time, I guess", he said to himself.

He noticed people would look at him and keep their distance. Some of them looked at a TV inside a fancy café, and then looked at him and his jackal, comparing them in order to make sure they were the same. At the moment the passers-by realized who they were, everyone darted away from them like they've just seen two monsters.

Kurou stepped inside the café and realized he could understand what the reporter was saying at the news live broadcast:

"The mysterious undying man escaped the crime scene in the most unusual way: he walked away as if he had nothing to do with the murders he had just committed. The policemen who tried to shoot him down were interviewed by our crew and stated they suddenly felt like killing him was impossible, and not even worth trying. Questioned about why they didn't even try to arrest him, they said the fear of death was so great it was almost palpable. They felt as if a death god was standing there, a strand of hair away from passing judgment."

"Death God, uh?", Kurou smirked. "Is that what they think of me now, furry face?". Riddle didn't bother. The reporter continued:

"In the meantime, a strong light was seen inside the Egyptian Museum near the Nile River, and a man, around nineteen, was found lying on the ground. Witnesses vouched the young man was carrying the Golden Mask of Tutankhamon, but it was nowhere to be seen. They also said a beautiful woman was there, sword in hand, and started a fight with the mysterious undying man. They reported the man's head had been severed from his body, but suddenly vanished and reappeared back in his body. The woman, then, was supposedly killed by this man, but her body was also nowhere to be seen. Now the young man has been arrested and taken for interrogation, but remains unconscious".

"It seems you are famous now, Death God", a voice said from inside the café, startling Kurou.

As he searched for the source of the voice, he saw a familiar face; a one-armed old man, sitting by the counter, raised his hand in a friendly gesture. Riddle looked at him with blank expression.

"Mahmoud!", Kurou said out loud.

"Keep it low, buddy. This is a fancy café, you know", he smirked.

"I really didn't expect to find you here. No offense, I just think this is too fancy for people like us", Kurou said.

"Speak for yourself. I'm a friend of the owner, here. Hamadi, this is Kurou", he pointed to the barman.

"Greetings, mysterious man", Hamadi said with a slight bow. "I would be terrified of you if Mahmoud here hadn't given me a heads-up".

"So this old man has been talking about me behind my back, huh?", Kurou said.

"I just said you're not what people think you are", Mahmoud said. "Hamadi here is a trusted friend, so don't worry".

"Mind if I come in with my jackal? He's kind of a prick but knows how to behave most of the time", Kurou asked, and the gentlemen gestured for them to sit.

"So, is this really a coincidence? To meet you in a small, poor town, hear you talk about how Egypt wouldn't leave me, and after all this time, find you here again, all influent and well-informed about me and the things happening around me", Kurou asked.

"You surmise correctly. This is not a coincidence at all. But at first I couldn't believe my eyes. I'm well-versed, yes, in the Ancient Egyptian culture and history, but you are a totally unprecedented phenomenon. I understand that there's a hand of the Gods in this, but to actually be able to witness it all happening...it feels like I'm living a myth, do you understand?", Mahmoud said.

"Well, to me it feels like living a nightmare. And waking up would lead to an even worse nightmare", Kurou said.

"What are you talking about? You're freaking immortal! You can literally do whatever you want. You can explore the world, talk to Gods, find the hidden truth in everything! Many would kill for what you have", Mahmoud pondered.

"Yes, and now that I have it, I feel like doing nothing with it. It's not like I wished for it in the first place. All that has happened to me since that damn plane crash was against my will, and it feels like my fate doesn't belong to me in the slightest anymore", Kurou said.

"Maybe you're letting others lead your fate too much", Hamadi intervened. "What if you have the power in you to cut loose and take the reins of your fate again?".

"You know, I never believed in this fate crap. After seeing what the Gods are capable of, I was shaken for a while. But I never wanted to be a puppet. I refuse to be caught in the middle of their crossfire", Kurou said.

"Well, maybe you're a bit late for that", Mahmoud said. "But a few words of wisdom might make a difference, so hear me out".

Kurou straightened himself in his chair. Riddle howled asking for food and Hamadi threw him a generous chunk of raw meat, which he happily devoured in seconds.

"Hamadi and me are of Ancient Egyptian ascendance. Every person you can speak to in Egypt are the same. That's why you can talk to Pharaohs or even Gods of this land. When you were judged by Anubis, Maat intervened, and Her influence changed you to the core. One of these changes is the ability to speak to anyone with the blood of Ancient Egyptian people".

"So that means even that reporter on TV...".

"Yes, she certainly belongs to an Ancient Egyptian lineage, even if she herself doesn't know that", Mahmoud said.

"Well, that clarifies things a little", Kurou said. "Still feeling lost here for the most part, though".

"The fact that you can understand Ancient Egyptian language has two uses, Kurou", Mahmoud said. "For one, you can understand us, which is good. On the other hand, you can understand people who were reborn and are here to hurt you".

"Like Nefertiti".

"Precisely", Mahmoud said.

"So when I hear someone speaking to me in Ancient Egyptian, they're either friend or foe, is that what you're telling me?", Kurou asked.

"Basically, yes. There are a few neutral cases like the reporter, though. You have to keep an eye open at all times, just to be sure. Being immortal is good and all, but there are things worse than death", Mahmoud said.

"Oh, that's something I'm learning the hard way, my friend. Some things are definitely worse than death", Kurou said, and stood up, gesturing a goodbye.

"By the way", Kurou said, before leaving the café with Riddle. "How do you know all this?".

"I'm a mysterious man as well, my friend", Mahmoud said smiling from the corner of his lips. "But my eyes are not as scary as yours, I'll give you that".