Mike Resnick - The Amulet of Power (Lara Croft: Tomb Raider)

You have found her! enthused one of the men. You have found Lara Croft!

Yes, answered Omar. She does not have the Amulet, as we had hoped, but she has agreed to help us find it. Now we must reach Khartoum before the Mahdists find us.

We are ready, said the man.

Omar shook his head. You will not be coming with usat least, not immediately.

The mens expressions registered disappointment.

There is an Englishman onboard, continued Omar. His name is... He turned to Lara.

Kevin Mason, she said promptly.

His name is Kevin Mason, repeated Omar. He is a friend of Lara Crofts, the son of a great scholar, and a worthy scholar in his own right. He may prove useful in our search for the Amulet. I want you to make sure that no harm comes to him on his journey to Khartoum.

If Lara Croft is not on the boat, why should any harm befall him? asked the other man.

The Mahdists may have spies aboard the boat right now. They will surely send more when it stops at Abu Simbel. He is the only Englishman aboard, and it is known that Lara Croft escaped Cairo in the company of an Englishman. If they capture him, they will surely torture him to find out where she is. If he tells them, they will be waiting for us when we arrive at the Bortai Hotel. If he does not tell them, they will almost certainly kill him. It is your job to make sure this does not happen. You will protect his life with your own.

The mens disappointed expressions were replaced by looks of fierce anticipation at the thought of fighting their enemies aboard the Amenhotep.

Omar uttered a low command, and the camels dropped to their knees. He walked over and mounted the smallest of them. Hassam followed suit. Gaafar handed a leather crop to Lara and climbed onto his own camel.

Have you ever ridden a camel before, Lara Croft? asked Omar.

I still have the saddle sores, she replied with a self-deprecating laugh.

Just hook your left leg around what you would call the pommel of the saddle, said Gaafar. Lock your right leg over it, hold the reins in your left hand, and if you wish him to run, hit him with the leather whip, and yell Hut! Hut! Hut!

Until such time as someone actually starts shooting at us, answered Lara, I plan to hold the reins in my left hand, tuck the whip in my belt, and tell my camel to walk slowly and gently.

We will walk until it becomes necessary to run, agreed Omar. He turned to one of the men who had been waiting on the shore. Leave the saddles on the other two camels. Gaafar, lead them by the reins until we are well away from the river and any dwellings.

Then what? asked Lara.

Then we will turn them loose. Theyre herd animals; they will follow us.

Rather like a spare tire, she suggested.

Exactly, said Omar. We hope we wont need them, but if we do, youll be very glad that we have them.

And if any small group should stumble across our tracks, this may cause them to think that were six instead of four, added Gaafar. It might cause them to think twice about attacking us.

I assume you have your route planned? asked Lara, looking at the seemingly endless desert that began half a mile inland from the river.

Certainly, replied Omar. The Nile goes all the way to Khartoum. We will ride inland, but parallel to it. There will be oases along the way, and once we are well into the Sudan, there will be friendly villages as well.

How long will the trip take?

That depends on how long it takes the Mahdists to figure out where we are.

Inshallah, said Hassam.

Inshallah, agreed Omar and Gaafar.

You remain silent, Lara Croft, observed Omar. You do not know what Inshallah means?

I know, answered Lara. Im just not buying it.

I do not understand.

It means, if God wills it. Im afraid thats too fatalistic for me. She stared at Omar. No offense, but I believe in making my own fate. You can say Inshallah, Omar. As for me, I say: Let the enemy beware.

A smile crossed Omars homely face. I like you, Lara Croft. Even if I didnt, I would still risk my life for you, because of what you have promised us. But it is rare to find a beautiful woman who has the heart of a warrior.

Is it? asked Lara. Perhaps almost as rare as finding a waiter with a warriors heart.

Her three companions laughed at that, and then, at Omars signal, they urged their camels to their feet and began heading away from Lake Nasser. The two men who had brought the camels now climbed into the battered little lifeboat and rowed out to the Amenhotep.

Just out of curiosity, how did you know Id be on the Amenhotep and not some other boat? asked Lara, steering her camel next to Omars.

I didnt, answered Omar. I have been on that horrible boat for almost three weeks.

Why?

We knew that sooner or later someone would visit the Temple of Horus in search of the Amulet of Mareish. That is why we arranged to have it closed to the publicso that we would know that whoever entered it was no tourist, but was almost certainly looking for the Amulet. Omar paused and slapped at a fly that had landed on his cheek, then flicked it away. We didnt know who it would be, but we knew that the Mahdists would surely try to kill himor as it turned out, her. Of course, we couldnt know that part of the temple would collapse on you, or that youd be taken to a Cairo hospital before the Mahdists could react... but we knew if you survived, eventually you would make your way to the Sudan.

Why should you think so?

To return the Amulet if you found it, said Omar, and to search for it in the Sudan if you failed to find it in the Temple of Horus.

Why are you so sure I would take the Amulet to the Sudan if I found it? interrupted Lara.

Even if you do not believe in its power, you know that it is an historically important and valuable artifact, and that it is easily identified, explained Omar. Even if you stole it and managed to smuggle it out of the country, where could you sell it without having to answer some very troublesome questions? Whereas if you returned it to the Sudanese government, there would be a sizable reward.

Makes sense, agreed Lara.

That is the sensible answer, he agreed. The true answer is that the Amulet possesses powers whether you believe it or not, and those powers were made to be exercised in the Sudan. It will draw its owner there, possibly even against his or her will. Its power is released in proportion to the character of he who controls it. It is easier for an immoral man to tap into its reservoirs of strength, but a moral manor womancan utilize more of its powers.... And from all that we have been able to ascertain, you are a moral woman.

Anyway, Omar continued, we knew whoever found it would eventually try to make hisexcuse me: herway to the Sudan, and sooner rather than later. The Mahdists are watching all the airports, the train only runs sporadicallyonce every two or three weeks, which is not very helpful when people are hunting for youand almost all the major cruise ships ply their trade only between Luxor and Aswan. There are only two reasonable escape routes, and both are along the Nile: either north past Cairo and eventually Alexandria to the Mediterranean, or south to the Sudan. There are only one or two boats that go all the way to Sudan, and only a handful go all the way north to Alexandria and the sea. It wasnt difficult to pick the one most likely to appeal to someone who was running for her life.