The Legend of the Hand of Ra

*The Hand of Ra*

By Devin J. Rose

The ancient city of Karnak is filled with giant statues, pyramids and temples stretching as far as the eye can see. Even though the site was discovered in the 1800s, the complex remains mostly untouched by humans and nature alike. Dozens of treasure hunters have died trying to find and steal from this site. Today is not our day to die. We are here to find the legendary Hand of Ra, a powerful artifact said to be able to save our world from destruction.

"Okay Kapia, I'm ready." I say as we head into another tomb. We are still covered in sand from our last expedition where we freed a mummy's soul who had been trapped for a thousand years. When he saw us he cursed us and swore that he would send his army back down to kill us all if we didn't find what he referred to as The Hand of Ra and use it to free him from his eternal prison. Since then we've spent every day looking for it, barely sleeping and eating, just so we can finish this quest before he takes his revenge on us. I think it's finally paid off because this looks like the hole in the wall that we've been searching for all these months!

"I don't know about you guys but I'm pretty tired after today's expedition into that giant sand pit." Johnny says with a yawn as he sits down on a rock next to me. "I feel like I haven't slept since we started this."

"I know what you mean but let's try not to get too comfortable yet." Says Kapia as she pulls out her map and compass to make sure we're in the right place. "We still haven't found the Hand of Ra yet so let's not get too relaxed."

"I guess you're right but I really need some rest," Johnny says with another yawn as he closes his eyes.

"Johnny!" Yells Kapia as she slaps him across the face which causes him to open his eyes once again. "You can sleep once we find that relic! How are you going to help us if you fall asleep?"

*"I...don't...know..."* He replies with his head feeling light after being slapped awake again. Just then, one of our team members drops down on the other side of the hole in front of us holding an old lantern with smoke pouring out of it into the air around us making it hard to see anything more than a few feet in front of us. After coughing a bit, he yells as loud as he can while pointing at something behind him which causes everyone else besides myself and Johnny jump out of their skin!

"What is it Jeffery?" Kapia asks nervously while she stands up straight trying not to look scared at whatever it is that has scared her team mates so much.

"I-i-it....it's....the....Hand....of....Ra...." He stutters out before dropping his lantern which causes everyone to flinch once again due to how loud it sounded when it hit the ground causing everyone else besides me and Johnny to jump up into the air at least two feet off the ground!

"So what?!" Yells Kapia angrily while shaking some sand out of her hair from when she jumped up into the air too. "Is there something wrong with it?" She continues while walking toward where Jeffery was standing just seconds ago with her hands on her hips waiting for an answer from him like she always does whenever anyone finds anything that even remotely looks important out here.

"No...no...nothing wrong with it...but there is something special about it!" He replies nervously causing Kapia stare at him like she was ready to slap him again if he didn't start explaining himself properly soon enough!

"Well what do you mean by that?" She asks sternly while giving him her best death stare which makes him cower in fear slightly until she tries to calm herself down slightly so she doesn't scare him too much or else she'll never get any answers out of him! After taking a deep breath, Kapia tries again asking Jeffery politely this time with her hands clasped together next to her face instead of on her hips like they were previously which makes him feel less intimidated by her presence somewhat because he knows now that she won't physically hurt him anymore unless he gives her a reason too!

"How should I explain this?" He asks himself while scratching his head nervously before continuing a second later by saying, "Well for starters it feels hot but also cold at the same time!" He says as he holds up The Hand Of Ra which glows in his hand making liquid dance around inside its middle finger which is positioned towards the sky above them all slowly filling up with water there without any explanation why or how! Just then, water begins dripping from The Hand Of Ra's palm onto Johnny's head causing him wake up instantly from his nap without even needing someone to yell at him or slap him awake this time!

"Ow!" He yells loudly before wiping away some water from his forehead furiously while shouting, ""What did you do that for!?" To everyone else who were watching except me and Johnny who were too busy staring at The Hand Of Ra wondering why it looked familiar somehow...just like something they had seen somewhere before but they couldn't quite remember what?! Maybe they'll remember later when they aren't so shocked by what just happened? Only time will tell that tale!