Dhakira watches Ammon lead Jamie towards her (his?) quarters with a mix of amusement and concern for Jamie. » I’ll have to check with her tomorrow if she needs a remedy for a hangover. It’s a good thing that that halfling did not try to take advantage of the situation. »
When they left, she joins the other table not long after the Scorched Hand arrived. She’s annoyed about their remarks concerning the priests of Pharasma, »The most important things for the pharasmites is that the adventurers respect the numerous deceased entombed in the necropolis and I think they use the lottery to reign in the acquisitiveness of certain groups. » She adds on a less severe tone »But I haven’t heard about this temple that so interests you. To what God or Goddess is it, or was it dedicated? Are you looking for a particular object? »
Azaz seems incredibly interested in Jazadi's monologue on the exploration site. "That is intriguing, so a military commander that kept working through, what, the plague? Fool-hardy, but interesting nonetheless. Did you find any curses in the site?" He asks, professionally interested.
Ignoring the side conversation between the two history buffs, Khelru pipes up when both Ammon and Dhakira question the choice of site.
"We believe that it's part of our faith's background and that we should always seek to gain knowledge and understanding of our faith and our God. I'm sure here everyone understands. We only seek what is fair."
Velrianna chips in; "That is correct Khelru. It's absolutely an unfair declaration that we are not even allowed to switch sites if someone does draw it. Well, I see that it is pointless so maybe you all would be interested in switching if you draw it? We could provide you with a share of our treasure?"
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"If we were grooming friends perhaps I could show you one day.""But grooming is something different from ..." Uthe begins, but then her eyes narrow. "You are now teasing us, aren't you?" Her tail twitches and the bells tinkle.
"See, you're learning things too!" Say'ri replies with a smile. "I'll have to work harder to make you blush next time!"
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Probably better not to outright offend her at precisely this moment. Say'ri thinks, before responding with a non-committal shrug. "If you think you could get past the entire Temple of Pharasma to check out a tomb you weren't assigned... well more power to you." She says with a smile. "I don't think any of us are thinking much beyond our current job. There was a lot of do there and we're not finished by any means!"
It took quite a lot to make a former pirate blush. Doubly so to make a Garundi pirate visibly blush!
Ammon had seen lots of 'action' in his days, both the paid and unpaid kind, and he considered himself both very proficient in and impervious to simple acts of seduction.
But that was before he was exposed to the deadly combination of Jamie's (Nell's?) perfectly curved naked figure (minus the bug bites) mixed with halfling cuteness, set inside a scene that seemingly came straight from a Varisian smut novel.
Suddenly, he regretted his earlier decision to help her undo the armor, which had seemed harmless enough. Along with not asking either Jazadi or Dhakira to come along with them. A drunk Jamie was a disaster that invited all sorts of ledwness and he'd have felt a lot better if one of them was here to keep an eye on her. Not to mention he could have passed off this task to either of them!
Or, you know, keeping a hold on the pitcher of water he'd brought for jamie's inevitable hangover so he could have thrown it over himself in this very moment. The mug in question seemed to laugh at him from her nightstand.
As it were, he just stared at Jamie for a few seconds, unsure what to do. "I... well..."
Yes - what should he do? It was easy enough to rub her all over under the guise of being helpful. That was what his pre-death version would have done. That guy probably couldn't have hesitated to take things a bit further too. Seemed easy enough?
But no. This surely counted as a major sin in Osiris' divine scales. He/she was his teammate! He had to resist and find a better way!
But he couldn't just not do it? Those bites looked like they hurt!
Yeah, right. Of course it had nothing to do with willing to touch her all over?
He slapped himself with his left hand. "Sure. Just wait here and I'll get someone for you!"
Quicker than might have been expected for him, he backed off and locked the door. He knew a sober jamie could lockpick the thing easily, but hopefully she wasn't thinking straight.
Unaware of the whole female-on-female propositioning thing going on outside, he hurried downstairs and looked for their intrepid leader.
Not really registering what was going on between Say'ri and Uthe, he started talking instantly. "Lady Say'ri! Quick, we have an emergency. Jamie is drunk and I need you to rub this oil all over her!"
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Not really registering what was going on between Say'ri and Uthe, he started talking instantly. "Lady Say'ri! Quick, we have an emergency. Jamie is drunk and I need you to rub this oil all over her!"
Say'ri starts, pauses for a moment and then burst out laughing.
"Uthe. Why don't you talk to Ammon here about the difference between mating and mounting. Unless I'm mistaken he's just been offered one..."
With that she takes the pot of oil and heads upstairs. Ammon left the key in the lock so she opens the door and finds Jamie looking expectant.
"What did you say to him?" Say'ri asks with a grin. "I mean you're cute and all, especially with your shirt off, but I thought you must have started talkng in foreign tongues and calling him 'Brother' or something, the way he came running downstairs. Now, let's see about these bites."
Jamie blinks in surprise as Ammon slaps himself, runs away, and locks the door behind him. "Huh. Was it something I said?" she asks nobody in particular. She stifles a yawn before climbing onto the bed.
By the time Say'ri enters the room, she finds Jamie passed out naked on the sheets, snoring loudly.
"Uthe. Why don't you talk to Ammon here about the difference between mating and mounting. Unless I'm mistaken he's just been offered one..."
With that she takes the pot of oil and heads upstairs.
"Wait, what do you-?"
He looks at Uthe, then back at Say'ri's retreating form, then back at the catfolk, as his mind slowly connects the dots.
He groans and looks at the heavens. "Why? How many trials must a man endure on a single day...?"
Shaking his head, he looks at Uthe. "So, daughter of Bastet. What do you say to ordering a very strong drink? And maybe asking the tavern mage to make us a fresh bucket of icewater too. I certainly need one..."
"Yeah, I personally have no desire to offend the lady of Graves or any of the other gods who made us win our lottery. Tempting them is bad luck. I'm curious though - how did figure it was a brothel? Are you sure there isn't a secret door you missed somewhere?" Ammon asks the other team, taking alterning chugs of strong whiskey and very cold water.
"Well, let's just say the images on the walls made it very clear that it was once a brothel. Idorii here wouldn't miss a secret door at any rate. I suppose you're right, let's not offend the Reaper of the Dead as assuredly it might not end so well." Velriana replies with a grin. She finishes her drink in one and downs it with a bang on the table.
"Well, we should be going anyway before it gets too late and we need to be up bright and early tomorrow. We're going to be getting our second assignment. Good luck to you if you're still on your first." She winks as Idorii and Khelru get up to join her, Azaz lost in conversation with Jazadi on Ancient Osiriani engineering. Velriana rolls her eyes, "Oh come on Azaz, she will still be around tomorrow."
With that, the Scorched Hand leave your troop alone.
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Since Jamie fell asleep on her front Say'ri completes her good deed anyway, rubbing the oil into the bites on the halfling's back, before slipping out of the room again.
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"Enjoy!" Say'ri calls after the retreating group and then looks around the emptying tavern. "I think that's mu cue." She says, "Jazz, you coming up now or in a bit? Either way, night everyone!"
Eventually, the conversation finishes and Jazadi wanders upstairs to join Say'ri, journal in hand.
"...so, day one of our expedition seems to be going quite well." She says once they're in their room together. She drops her journal on the nearby desk and starts digging out her quill and inkwell--along with a small bag full of sand, oddly enough. "Aside from the spiders, cockroaches and the iron cobra at the end."
She send a look of cautious understanding toward the other group ''Of course you want to take every opportunity to learn more about your deity and religion. But for the same reasons, you'll understand that I won't go against the edicts of Pharasma's priests.''
When they left, she looks around the table to the present members of her team ''I kind of hope we don't get ''their'' temple in the lottery, I feel like these guys could be trouble.''
When everybody gets up to go to bed Well good night everyone. Are we going shopping tomorrow morning before going back to the tomb?'' Then to Ammon in particular ''Is Jamie OK? You seemed somewhat flushed when you came down.1,, She's used to noticing these in those with darker complexions.
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"...so, day one of our expedition seems to be going quite well." She says once they're in their room together. She drops her journal on the nearby desk and starts digging out her quill and inkwell--along with a small bag full of sand, oddly enough. "Aside from the spiders, cockroaches and the iron cobra at the end."
"True, but the cobra is fascinating." Say'ri replies, pulling said construct out from under her bed. "There's a reservoir built in behind the fangs for poisons... I'd love to learn how to build these. But as it is I'll be taking this to a smith and getting him to casts bullets for me. Finding really pure iron isn't the easiest thing and then we fight this! Quite lucky really."
Once the light is turned out there is a long silence and then...
"Jazz? Thank you for coming here with me."
''Is Jamie OK? You seemed somewhat flushed when you came down?"
"Oh, I'd say she's fine. Very fine, even," Ammon replies. "She just, ah... wanted some help rubbing the ointment over the insect bites. I thought it best to get another woman to treat them over me. She was quite drunk and probably wouldn't have asked me otherwise."
"Unfortunately..." he whispers under his breath. "But come, lady Dhakira. Let's go back to our rooms and prepare for tomorrow. We have another long day ahead and both of us need to be at our best."
He offers to bring her to her room, then heads off to sleep himself.
Dhakira accepts Ammon's gallant offer and follows him up the stairs. ''You're discretion is honorable. Were you able to find someone to help her?'' When Ammon confirms that Say'ri went up to take care of the halfling, she bids him goodnight. ''I will prepare my old'pa's famous receipe for a hangover remedy and leave on her side table than go to sleep myself. Rest well, we'll need your strength tomorrow.''. She prepares the remedy from her supplies, go discreetly to Jamie's room to deliver it, then goes to bed.
A new day brings its new challenges. Even though it is early the heat is already close to unbearable, the air dry and a slight wind whips through Wati, bringing sand as it goes.
Making your way back to the gates of the Necropolis, the Pharasmin Priests greet you as they open it up for the day's exploration, reminding all groups of the rules. Luckily your rope and pitons are still sturdy from the previous day, and you are all able to use this to lower yourselves back into the tomb to continue from where you left off.
A brightly painted chariot sits in the center of this chamber. Beyond the chariot, a large canvas stretches between two stone columns. The skins of several animals—antelopes, great cats, and crocodiles—now faded and deteriorated with age, are tacked to this canvas. A wooden chest, lacquered white and trimmed with gold inlay, sits in the southeast corner. In each corner of the room a small stone shield is molded into the masonry at shoulder height. An open hallway leads to the east, and a set of stone double doors leads south .
Time has still taken a toll on the chariot, such that using it as a vehicle would be dubious at best. The shield devices in each of the corners are torch holders.
The chest in the southeast corner is locked and Jamie points out that there is a razor sharp mechanism that would slice the hand of a would-be thief.
The morning after, Dhakira wakes up early , she cleans up and shaves, than spends an hour praying to Pharasma while arranging little rocks she keeps in a bag in a spiral patterns. Then she goes downstairs to get breakfast with the others. She inquires about Jazadi's and Jamie's health ''Are you alright my dears?''
She follows the group to their tomb, after a bit of shopping. She stays well away from the chest when Jamie notices the trap and offers to cast Guidance if necessary before trying to defuse it.
Jamie groans as the sunlight streaming through the window wakes her up. Groggily, she sits up, holding her pounding head. Her memory of the previous night is hazy. She was drinking with Ammon, they came up to her room, then... Then what?
Belatedly, she realizes she is naked, and somebody has rubbed ointment on her insect bites. Also there is a fizzy concoction on her nightstand. ”He didn’t... We didn’t, did we? Cayden’s balls, why is the sun so damn bright!”
She sips the drink, which helps, as she pulls on her clothes and heads downstairs, not having the energy to do her hair like normal. She grunts when Dhakira asks about her. ”Fine. Just need some food, I think.”
The halfling blushes when Ammon arrives, and she tries to avoid eye contact with him.
***
Jamie is feeling somewhat better when they return to the tomb. She takes point again, discovering the trap and working confidently to disarm it and pick the lock.
"Jazz? Thank you for coming here with me."
Once Jazadi has finished transcribing the day's happenings to her journal (Scrivener's Chant is such a wonderful spell for that), she turns in for bed.
"Oh, you're quite welcome."
Shaking his head, he looks at Uthe. "So, daughter of Bastet. What do you say to ordering a very strong drink? And maybe asking the tavern mage to make us a fresh bucket of icewater too. I certainly need one..."
"Is she not to your taste?" Uthe asks, her head tipped in curiosity. "The halfling woman, we mean. She seemed amiable to your approach. Did she not wish for you to mount her after all? How humans approach the physical act is still quite confusing to us. You seem to take great effort in complicating something that is really quite simple."
She shakes her head and the bells in her ears ring and jingle.
"Cool water to drink would be refreshing, though. Thank you," she says, rising to join the large man.
~~~~~
The next morning Uthe is quite pleased to make the circuit of the various merchants and peddlers that she's met and befriended to help dispose of a great majority of the treasures that they've recovered so far.
~~~~~
The sorceress takes a moment to examine the artifact for any traces of magical auras as Jamie is disarming the trap on the chest.
Jamie manages to unpick the lock with ease and opens the chest. The chest is beautiful and is worth 200 gp as an art piece (including the trap, which can be reset). The chest contains two potions of cure light wounds and one potion of dark vision. Also inside the chest are two books with thin, gold-plated metal sheets for pages. The first is a brief biography of Akhentepi, and the second is a list and description of the various military campaigns conducted by the nation of Osirion between 2350 and 2450 ar. Each book weighs 25 pounds and is worth 300 gp.
Moving on to the next short hallway, four funerary masks hang on one wall staring down as if in judgment at anyone standing in the corridor. From west to east, the masks depict the gods Pharasma and Abadar, and two more unusual masks. Each mask is gold-plated and worth 75gp.
Sekhmet, and Osiris, the ancient Osirian goddess of war and god of the afterlife, respectively.
The short hallway opens out into a slightly larger square room with a table displaying a three-dimensional diorama occupies much of the north side of this room. Three shields with different designs are displayed upon a rack against the east wall, while various weapons hang from another rack along the south wall. Arrayed around the room are five small chests and a clay urn.
As soon as Ammon and Jamie take a step into the room, three tiny wooden dolls from the diorama spring to life, point their tiny hands at you with faces twisted in anger and begin clambering down the diorama. As soon as they reach the ground, it is clear that their motives are not good as they run forward to attack!
Jamie backs away and shoots at a doll!
Jazadi draws her whip and tries to trip the nearest doll threatening Say'ri!
Ammon strikes the now tripped doll in his immediate front, and maintains his position to guard the others behind him!
Looking the masks ''I recognize the likeness of my Lady of the Graves and Abadar, but I can't seem to place the other two. Are these of the Old Gods Ammon?'' She grunts in frustration at not knowing.
Dhakira flicks her wrist and the wand of Bless comes to her hand from her brand new wrist sheath and casts Bless on the team.
"Is she not to your taste?" Uthe asks, her head tipped in curiosity. "The halfling woman, we mean. She seemed amiable to your approach. Did she not wish for you to mount her after all? How humans approach the physical act is still quite confusing to us. You seem to take great effort in complicating something that is really quite simple."
Ammon smiles wistfully. "It's not as simple of a situation as you might think, though part of it is not my place to tell. Jamie is not an ordinary halfling woman, it seems. And... she was drunk. Like, really, *really* drunk. 'Mounting or mating with her', as you call it, would be taking advantage of her not being able to think straight, or resist. It feels like doing it against her will, and I can't do that to a team member. At least, that's my reasoning."
He glances to the side and upwards to the full moon, enjoying the cool evening breeze for a moment. "Do you often wonder about that, Uthe? Right and wrong, and if you could or should have done something differently? Or do you just live in the moment, uncaring about the effects of your choices on others?"
Ammon joins the others at table and blushes a bit when initially meeting Jamie's gaze, though he fortunately has his skin colour to cover for him. Noticing her constantly looking away and not willing to go into a potential life and death situation with akwardness issues unresolved, he eventually decides to pry. Did she remember anything...? "So, was Say'ri able to help you with the bites? The bug bites - I mean," he quickly adds. "I figured a sober you would have preferred her help over mine?"
"I do," He answers Dhakira. "The one on the left is my own god, Osiris. He is the ancient Osiriani god of afterlife and rebirth. He judges the souls of the dead and weighs their sins against their valor. Not unlike Pharasma. Many scholars have noted an uncanny resemblance between the two over the ages. Some more humorous takes question whether Osiris is secretly a cross-dresser and if he somehow tricked his way into modern day more prominent religions which i shall not specify."
He grins and winks at Dhakira, then makes a warding gesture and grabs his holy symbol of the crook and flail. "I jest, of course. Osiris is an impotant figure in the Osiriani pantheon, being husband to Isis, father to Horus and enemy to his brother, Seth."
After getting the go-ahead from Jamie, he takes the maks and dusts it off for closer inspection. "I believe this picture shows one of the more famous stories surrounding him on the sides. Legends say how he was cut into many pieces by his jealous brother, only for his wife to travel the desert for many years to collect them all in a single mummy. Unfortunately, she couldn't find his genitals, as Seth had fed them to a fish. So, aided by the knowledgeable Thoth, she used her magic to make him a new 'tool' out of clay. It is said his mummified form came back to life just long enough for Isis to become pregnant of Horus, who finally ended Seth's rain of terror. After his demise, being a god, Osiris became the gatekeeper of the realm of death - replacing Anubis."
Then, he takes a look at the second mask. "The lioness head symbolizes Sekhmet. She is a warrior goddess and daughter of the sun god Ra. Some of her skills included warfare, healing and protecting the Pharoahs, making it logical why her mask lies besides Osiris, the original one. She was also rumored to breathe fire, and the hot desert wind was sometimes likened to her breath. Perhaps strangely, she was married to Ptah, a rather meek god of craftsmen. I guess opposites attract, and that Sarenrae is a decent modern equivalent of her."
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After breakfast, where Say'ri seems in good spirits judging by the number of jokes she makes at Ammon and Jamie's expense, she collects Uthe and heads out into the markets. There they play 'reasonable native' and 'scary outsider' to some effect and trade much of the loot they found in Akhentepi's tomb for good coin, and then to the temple of Pharasma for more useful items.
When they return to the inn Say'ri distributes two wands to Dhakira, a rather worn sword in a leather sheathe to Ammon, and leave it to Uthe to hand out the two flaming ioun stones.
"That's used most of our funds." She explains, "But we still have around two hundred gold pieces left. Plenty more in the tomb I imagine, so let's get going!"
He glances to the side and upwards to the full moon, enjoying the cool evening breeze for a moment. "Do you often wonder about that, Uthe? Right and wrong, and if you could or should have done something differently? Or do you just live in the moment, uncaring about the effects of your choices on others?"
"We make the decisions that we feel are the right decisions. Sometimes we consider how that affects others. Other times, the decision is one that can not be made any other way and so how it will affect others is irrelevant." She considers the moon as well. "We try hard not to think about those too much."
~~~~~
Uthe is still getting used to the motion of the stones moving around some of her companion's heads and so is caught flat-footed when the small constructs attack.
Some more humorous takes question whether Osiris is secretly a cross-dresser and if he somehow tricked his way into modern day more prominent religions which i shall not specify."
Dhakira answers seriously ''Well it is believed that Pharasma is the ildest being in existence, so it's more probable she was the cross-dresser, appearing as a man to ancient osirians, which could explain the absence of his, hhmmm... sexual member...''
"So, was Say'ri able to help you with the bites? The bug bites - I mean," he quickly adds. "I figured a sober you would have preferred her help over mine?"
Jamie finally turns to look at Ammon, eyes widening slightly. ”Say’ri? Ah, yes, of course! She was a great help. My injuries feel much better now, thank you.”
The halfling seems to relax a bit after that. Before they head into the tomb, she sidles up to the fighter. ”So, uh, about last night... I might have overestimated my body’s tolerance for alcohol. Thank you for ensuring that I did not embarrass myself too much. It was very... gentlemanly of you.”
Jazadi's whip cracks through the air and managed to trip one of the dolls. Ammon takes advantage of this and smashes one into smithereens. Jamie's crossbow bolt clatters on the floor beside the dolls.
The tiny doll facing down Say'ri slams into her with its full force but clangs back off her shield
The other rushes forward to slam into Ammon but again bounces back off his shins.
Without a clear shot, Jamie drops her crossbow and steps forward. She draws a dagger from her belt and jabs at the doll, trying to distract it so Ammon can score a good hit.
"Bah! Stop moving around so much!" she scolds the doll.
”So, uh, about last night... I might have overestimated my body’s tolerance for alcohol. Thank you for ensuring that I did not embarrass myself too much. It was very... gentlemanly of you.”
He waves it off and smiles. "No problem. We're part of the same crew aren't we? We respect eachother at our lows, even if we drink like half our bodyweight in alcohol."
He winks at Jamie and continues eating.
Ammon laughs heartily. "Ah, a priestress of Pharasma with good humor! So you imply Pharasma could be the father of Horus? I wonder what our leader would say to that, given how her father is his high priest and all."
He motions to Say'ri.
Ammon grins at Jamie's antics but holds back his swing momentarily and calls to Jazadi. "Think you can do that trick again?"
He takes a quick sidestep to give her a better line to the doll, intent on striking afterwards.
He waves it off and smiles. "No problem. We're part of the same crew aren't we? We respect each other at our lows, even if we drink like half our bodyweight in alcohol."
He winks at Jamie and continues eating.
Jamie tries to chuckle but it comes out as a high-pitched giggle. She flushes pink again and turns back to her breakfast.
Jazadi lets out a little cheer when she manages to trip one of the dolls, and she tries to replicate her success!
Dhakira places a hand on Jazida's shoulder and casts Guidance.
Her companions seem to have these things well in hand so Uthe watches them with a discerning eye to become more familiar with their tactics. If she happens to be watching one more than the others then that could be explained in a number of different ways.
The fact that the woman is fairly pretty - for a stinky human, that is - had nothing to do with it.
Unfortunately, the chaos in the room puts everyone off their best and the dolls continue their attacks on Say'ri and Ammon.
Jamie continues to swing her dagger wildly, failing to distract the doll.
Maybe another body to distract them will help. Dhakira starts casting a spell
Ammon fails to entirely suppress a squeel of pain as the tiny doll slams down on his toe. Ah, the humility!
Then, he istens to Say'ri's command, shrugs and drops his longsword, then picks his Lucerne Hammer back up, momentarily dropping his guard.
"Everyone, shuffle back a bit and give me some space!"
Jazadi tries again...
...and this time she almost throws herself off balance.
It is a battle for the ages. Celestial allies emerge from the heavens to bring the righteous fury of the gods upon their foes. Mighty weapons crash down like thunderbolts and heroic women (and one man) battle with all their might and main to defeat their implacable golemic foes.
Back in the real world it takes a surprisingly long time to deal with the irritating dolls that are defending Akhentepi's tomb. The hardened clay resists many blows and it's not until Jazadi, Jamie and Ammon combine to trap and destroy the final doll that peace finally falls once again.
Most of the arms and armor on the racks are mundane items, but Akhentepi’s khopesh and spear are both masterwork weapons. The composite shortbow is still serviceable, but its string has deteriorated, and must be replaced before the weapon can be used. The scarabshaped steel shield is a magic scarab shield The chests are of good craftsmanship but less ornate than the one found previously. None of the chests are locked or trapped, but each has been sealed with wax. They contain a sack with a 100 gp and 42 sp, and several scroll tubes holding papyrus records, private memos, expense ledgers, speeches, and private correspondence. Among the papers are discussions regarding the unfinished tomb of Akhentepi’s mistress. There is little else of interest in the papers, but to a collector or Osirionologist,
these documents are worth 250 gp total if undamaged. The clay urn is also sealed with wax and contains nard, an expensive, oily perfume, worth 75 gp.
The whole of the tomb is completely explored!
Jazadi's eyes widen to the size of saucers and she makes a beeline for the papyrus records.
”Another victory for the Falcons!” Jamie declares, pumping her fist in the air.
Once the loot is cataloged and hauled off to be sold, she turns to her teammates. ”Shall we keep the streak going? I’m fine to continue to the next assignment, unless you all would prefer to rest first.”
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"I don't think anyone has been badly hurt?" Say'ri agrees. "I suppose the question is do we want to try and get the chariot out? If we work together we can do it I'd imagine, but it'll take a while. Still, no point in leaving money lying around."
Under Say'ri's organisation and with Jazadi's expertise the chariot comes into a variety of small pieces and, better yet, comes back together outside of the tomb! Overall it is a magnificent success!
''Wow those little things were nasty! Don't judge a container by it's size like my ol'ma always said.'' She winks at Jaime.
She looks the papyrus over with Jezadi ''Let's be careful with those, once we've studied them, They might be worth a pretty copper to a collectionner.''
To Say'ri '' We have time. I think it's worth our while to take the chariot. Then maybe we ask the priests of Pharasme for the name of our next dig and do some research for the rest of the day. Or discuss deities and paternity'' She adds with a smile looking from Ammon to Say'ri.
"Let's be careful with those, once we've studied them, They might be worth a pretty copper to a collector."
Jazadi nods in agreement. "Indeed, these correspondences must be ancient--and they're bound to be quite fragile."
"Especially these two--they look like they're discussing the specific decorations of the tomb of Ahkentepi's mistress. I didn't realize she was such a high-maintenance lady, from the way these two were carrying on." The archaeologist holds up a pair of papyrus scrolls. "I mean, golden idols in almost every chamber, each of her twelve cats being mummified... small wonder the tomb wasn't finished."