The curse of Kalaan Read Online Free Page B

to come!”
    Jean-François was positively beaming at the count. Not able to resist anymore, Kalaan had to ask,
    “What is left to come?”
    “Akhenaten!” exclaimed a very excited Champollion. “He is mentioned here, on this very door! And it is not a woman, as we presumed, but a man, a pharaoh! Listen. It is written that in this place, so that the reign of the pharaoh Akhenaten may pass in peace, a magic ritual was practiced, according to the sacred dictates of Imhotep. Wait. I must read this again!” and Champollion, returned grumbling to study the inscriptions.
    “Ancestral charms!” Salam was not pleased. “I warned you that this had nothing of a tomb. We must go no further. The magic of the ancient ones is feared and respected, for it is all powerful.”
    “Ye hear dat lad? Let’s return!” added Lil’ Louis as he started turning to leave.
    “No!” responded Kalaan, harshly. “Something is pushing me forward. I don’t know how to explain it. I simply must enter this mausoleum, tomb, crypt, whatever it is, I must enter!”
    “There,” said Jean-François, completely indifferent to the growing tension in the group, so absorbed he was by his deciphering and the sheer scale of what he was discovering. “It is written, ‘Imhotep stands guard here, all the Pharaoh’s fears, concealed or retained (I can’t quite understand this means here, on to the next one ) by the magic stone will be to bring purity to Aton and the eternal prosperity of the people of Egypt.’”
    “So, this Imhotep, if he’s revealed to be human, would he be buried here?” Kalaan made no effort to hide his interest.
    “No,” Champollion replied as he turned back to his work with the inscriptions. “It is more about using his science through magical formulas and especially a stone, to free the pharaoh Akhenaten of all his fears and — here I’ve only partially translated — a curse. It’s hardly surprising; apparently it was customary to warn tomb robbers that they would be cursed if they crossed the threshold of any sacred or royal structures. Perhaps it would be more prudent to...” Jean-François suddenly added as he slowly backed away. In a split second his attitude had completely changed from pure joy to obvious apprehension.
    What? Now he’s shirking as well? Kalaan could not control his surge of anger come from only lord knows where; at that moment he was acting like a man possessed.
    “Curses are only for cowards who have nothing in their trousers!” he said, squaring his shoulders. “In that aspect, Mother Nature was very generous with me, and, as I certainly would not want to offend her, I owe it to myself to pay no heed to your warnings and pass through that damned door!”
    “Oh, mis’ry,” Lil’ Louis sighed, covering his eyes with his hand. “The impetuous brat has returned... What we ‘ave in our trousers does not make us real men, Bejesus!”
    Jean-François stood with his mouth open. He had no idea how to react. A feeling of dread was gnawing at him, gripping his spirit and numbing his body.
    Seeing how pale and confused he was, Kalaan gave him a sly smile.
    “So, are you one?” he whispered.
    “One…what?” Jean-François, surprised by the question, could barely speak.
    “A coward!”
    The Egyptologist could not help but glance down at the buttons on his trousers, thinking about what the count had said. He jumped like a child caught in the act when he heard his friend laugh huskily. That rascal! He’d got him yet again!
    “No, of course not!” he retorted, laughing stiffly.
    “And what about the intelligent speech you made a short while ago? Fear can be perfectly respectable when it pushes us to make the right choices ? ” Salam subtly questioned in his strong accent. “Cowardice and fear are synonymous; this would be the time to make the right choice and not cross that threshold.”
    Salam’s words were torment to Kalaan’s mind, in which reason and folly were doing battle. Was he a