OOC: Thank you. I was worried nobody had noticed. As far as I'm concerned, it isn't a sucessful pun unless people have the urge to groan and throw things at the perpetrator.<br/><br/><blockquote class="uncited"><div>As Chris reached the upper level he blinked and took a step back. "Holy crap, I'm in Egypt." He grinned at Ptricia. "If we ever do a stadium tour you're in charge of effects." Giving her the once over in her outfit he nodded. "So everything has to be correct? Even the outfit? Huh. Seems my history books were wrong."</div></blockquote><br/><br/>"Maybe you didn't read the ones I provided research material for." She smirked.<br/><br/><blockquote class="uncited"><div>He grinned again. "Effects and costumes. This would put Iron Maiden to shame." He ran over to her and took the jar, opening the pool and spreading the sand around, quickly getting an even coating. <br/><br/>"Alright. That's done." Listening to the list of artefacts and scrolls you want him to get he seems to sag slightly. "Mouse....scrolling." Resisting the urge to bang his head off something, he gathered the items necessary and with a fair amount of head-scratching he laid them out in the right order. Making a final adjustment to one of the scrolls he jumped out of the pool and nodded to Ptricia. "Alright. Let's do this." </div></blockquote><br/><br/><blockquote class="uncited"><div>The wolfeasel looked at Ptricia. "Thank you for everything. If I die, I won't forget you guys." He gave her a hug and Reizu fearlessly stepped into the circle, never stopping.</div></blockquote><br/><br/>Ptrica looked stunned for a moment, then patted him gently on the back with one great paw as he hugged her.<br/><br/><blockquote class="uncited"><div>[Chris] glared at Reizu. "Will you stop saying that! You're not going to die!"</div></blockquote><br/><br/>"That's right, don't be so bloody morbid. Besides, I scritched behind your ears, that means I'm owed a proper scritching by you, and I aim to collect."<br/><br/><blockquote class="uncited"><div>Stepping into the Nile Delta sands, he stood ready to attention, waiting for further instruction. "Ptricia, let's do this thing and blow this hell-ridden collar to the River Styx! Once and for all."</div></blockquote><br/><br/>OOC: The sand is in the pool at the edge of the circle, not the centre.<br/><br/>"Well you could step off the pool and get back in the circle." she suggested. "I'm here, on the edge, you're over there, in the bloody great bullseye!"<br/><br/><blockquote class="uncited"><div>Chris suddenly seemed to take on...a higher stature. His fur was more ragged, his usual expression of serene detachment replaced with a hardened stare. He stood straighter and his eyes glowed in the same way Rayn's had earlier. This was the Drage, the condition some non-dragon magic users experience after spending a large amount of time exposed to the constant magical energies of dragons. It essentially heightened them to a new state of being and mind-making them physically, mentally and psychically stronger. It affected Chris in high-stress situations, and once every month, almost like a were-type phenomenon. Clearly he has changed now in case Ptricia needs any magical aid in this task.</div></blockquote><br/><br/>"Chris, get well back... A Drage trance?" She put a paw to her forehead. "'Then why didn't you list that among our assets!'" she quoted. "Next you'll be telling me you have a holocaust cloak. Oh well, I'll deal with you later."<br/><br/>She turned to face Reizu, and her voice went to reverb as her eyes started to glow. "Reizu Emano Akatsu! Know that you are safe. Do not fear, I shall protect you. I so swear by my true name, Ptriciamotepatoloma."<br/><br/>She started speaking in Akkadic, a chant, and the lines of light on the floor shot up as translucent curtains of light. As you listened, the words started making sense, even though they were in a language you didn't understand. The items placed about the circle rose up also, the catnip mouse spinning in an unseen breeze.<br/><br/>"As the night fades, let my sight be as the solar barge, bringing light to eliminate the darknesses that surround him. Let Ra, mighty Horus, guide my course, Hu, the drummer, beat the time for the rowers, and Upshe, the lookout rise to the bow to seek the way. Let it be so, early in the morning...<br/><br/>"Hu, Ra, and Upshe rises! Hu, Ra and Upshe rises! Hu Ra, and Upshe rises! Early in the morning!"<br/><br/>The curtains of light billow and flicker, and the collar seems to expode outwards. But it is only an image of the collar, hovering above the circle, now Chris can see the overlay of things Ptricia saw as she looked through her Eye of Horus.<br/><br/>The purple snakes bent away from the circle that their entwined tails made, striking inwards again and again, The skull face of the seal chatters and leers in a hideous rictus grin. The ornate chest at the centre is cracked and dented, and grey tendrils are flowing out to be replaced by streamers of luminous edged black that flow in to replace them.<br/><br/>The sphinxes wings extend, and Ptricia's mantle waves the staff, and the snakes recoil as the chest is infused with a glowing nimbus of light. "Spawn of Apep! You shall not have him!" The luminous black leaches from the cracks, but as it does, the nimbus noticably fades. "Sekmet, aid me in this noble fight!"<br/><br/>The image of a lioness formed of glowing light coalesces on the edge of the circle, and leaps to attack the skull, claws outstretched. It snaps and chatters at her, but the claws hit home, cracking it's jaw and cheekbone. Unfortunately, the chest also seems to shudder, and cracks appear in one edge.<br/><br/>"Damn, I was afraid of that!" You hear Ptricia exclaim. "Ma'at, balance my actions..." She shuddered as a bruise appeared on one cheek, "... and close the door they have created for this evil!" The chest visibly repaired itself. "Remove them from the door, Ma'at." The white nimbus renewed, the snakes writhed as if on a flame, and the skull gaped as if shrieking in soundless agony.<br/><br/>But they recovered and started once again picking at the chest, or rather, the nimbus surrounding it. "Oh, Bes on a biscuit... Enough!"<br/><br/>The image faded, and the light curtains flickered and shrank like dying flames. Ptricia's head was bowed, and her spread wings dropped. "Sneaky bar-stewards... That is some gotcha they built in. But I'm not done yet." Her head came up and there was a fierce look in her eye. "Not by a long shot!"