The nightclub party was a wonderful way to top off our tour. Making a bathroom stop before leaving, a terrible dizziness came over me. Josi saw what was happening and thought I had food poisoning. Putting cool water on my face seemed to help. Waiting for everyone to get on the bus, once boarded, I felt dizzy again with some nausea and had to get off.
Ricky, being concerned, got off with me.
I needed fresh air.
Taking deep breaths to clear my head, the driver leaned out the bus door and said, “I need to leave.”
Hearing this, Josi and J.J. got off the bus to join me.
Ricky told the driver, “We’ll walk a while then grab a taxi back to the hotel. I’ve got the hotel’s address and phone number.”
Dr. Peters, standing in the bus doorway cautioned, “Please be careful, it’s late and we must leave tomorrow afternoon.”
J.J. reassured him, “Don’t worry, Dr. Peters, we’ll be back in about an hour, two at the most. Right, Ricky?”
“Right.”
Ricky guided me away from the exhaust as the bus pulled away.
It was a beautiful Egyptian evening with the moon low in the star filled blue black sky. Looking across the road, I noticed Giza off in the distance. Automatically I started walking toward it. Everyone was talking and laughing, just going along. Still dressed in our Egyptian costumes we must have looked quite the spectacle to cars passing by. I told everyone I wanted to visit Giza again.
“Then you’re feeling better?” asked Josi as we walked.
“You don’t look as pale,” added J.J.
General discussion followed. Our decision made, we hailed a taxi. Arriving, Ricky told the driver to come back in an hour then gave him money and the paper with the hotel address. Walking through the parking area I felt a sudden urge to go to the Sphinx. Heading toward him, everyone followed.
Ricky was saying, “This is wild being here so late. Where are the guards?”
J.J. looking toward the Pyramids, “No one seems to be around.”
Josi, hanging onto J.J.’s arm, “This place is kind of spooky at night. I think we need to leave.”
Walking to the south side of the Sphinx near the back, “We have an hour.”
Josi was nervous. “Where are the guards, J.J.? I thought there was 24 hr. surveillance here. Come on, let’s leave. I have the creeps being here and it’s almost midnight. Let’s go back to the hotel and have a drink.”
I started talking about the possibility of a secret room deep inside the Sphinx. “Pyramids usually have entry doors on their southeast side. If there was a door into the Sphinx, it would be about here.” I pointed to a likely place.
Ricky sat on a stone block, “The door is probably buried deep in the sand. The Sphinx has been dug out of sand dunes many times. There’s a picture of the megalith completely buried except for its head.”
I agreed.
J.J. also wanted to go back to the hotel, so I asked, “Could we just sit and look at the moon for a moment then leave?”
Sitting on broken pieces of stone next to the Sphinx we talked about our trip and had some laughs, but as we got up to leave I felt another dizzy spell. It made me whirl around inside my head until stumbling forward I grabbed onto the side of the Sphinx. Using my arms for support, I held onto some protruding edges of stone. My mind was spinning and I felt very nauseated.
Hearing a low deep rumbling inside the Sphinx, Ricky yelled, “Layla move away something’s very wrong!” He was grabbing then pushing at me to move.
I heard Josi screaming as I moved back.
The stones directly in front of me disappeared making a doorway. I stood with Ricky holding onto my arm amazed by what had just happened.
J.J. was quite shaken as he said, “We all have to leave now!” He started leading Josi back to the parking area.
Ricky was very quiet. He was thinking the same thing as me, we needed to go inside. I realized that I felt normal again the dizziness was gone.
He asked, “What do you think?”
I shrugged, “My dizzy spell left when the door opened.”
Ricky stepped over the threshold and found a torch then lit it from a matchbook he had picked up at the restaurant. The light showed a staircase leading downward.
Looking at me he said, “Let’s go.”
I looked toward Josi; she had stopped walking and was looking back at us seeming curious, yet J.J. was coaxing her to leave.
I called to them, “We’re going in. I’ll see you back at the hotel. Ricky and I have to do this. I hope you both understand. If something happens it won’t be your fault, remember that!”
I could smell the stale air coming up from the stairwell. What if we die from lack of oxygen or the stairway drops off into oblivion? Ricky took my hand and we stepped into the waiting darkness.
As we descended I suddenly heard footsteps behind me. Turning I could barely make out Josi followed by J.J. coming down the staircase behind us.
Catching up, Josi said in a whisper, “I’m not going to live the rest of my life thinking you and Ricky disappeared and I didn’t have the guts to go with you.”
A terrible noise of grinding stone sounded. We were locked inside the Sphinx.
J.J. had picked up another torch, so Ricky lit it.
I asked, “Were there other torches near the door?”
“No, this was the only one.”
We descended deeper into the darkness and somewhere in the depths of the Sphinx we came to a room. It looked to be about 12 ft. by 16 ft. and there were several old torches mounted on the walls. Ricky cautiously lit one. It was good.
J.J. commented as he looked around, “Air must be vented into this room from somewhere. The torches are flickering and waving.”
The walls appeared to be lined with a type of metal. It was cool to the touch and reflective. We were actually looking at ourselves as we would appear in a dusty mirror. We started posing and chuckling at how we looked like ancient Egyptians in our restaurant garbs. Being nervous, it eased the situation to make light of something.
Ricky looked closer at the walls. The torches were put into the old holders but there was nothing to see really, the walls were smooth without seams or creases. It was extremely quiet and after several minutes we decided to go back up the staircase.
I felt I needed to do something before we left. “Hey, let me get into the moment. Wait while I try something.”
I went to the far wall at the end of the room and faced my friends. I stood with my hands reaching out on either side, my palms placed on the metal wall. Is there energy in this room? Slowly I felt a change.
Josi sat down on the floor Indian style and watched. J.J. and Ricky did the same. We waited and fell into a tranquil state of being.
The walls started to brighten.
Ricky quietly said, “There’s a mask covering your face, Layla.”
I could not move.
J.J. looked amazed by my transformation as did Josi.
I stood waiting.
An image was forming in the metal wall to my right. It became evident that the form was a man. I slowly realized it was the man who had passed Ricky and me at the De Young Museum, then the image changed to the man who had given me water at the Sphinx and finally it changed into the old man who had read my palm. We remained in a tranquil state as he started talking. His accent was unusual and melodious. He changed again into a man of today wearing gray slacks, a white shirt, and leather sandals. Black hair was pulled back into a knot at the back of his head and his eyes showed the Universe, if that were possible.
Talking low and precise he began, “Layla, we knew you would be our messenger. You were chosen for this fate eons ago. The stars were aligned to the second of your conception and it was your destiny to come here on this night. You have good friends, which is important because you will need support in the years ahead. You are going on a journey into the past. You asked the great Sphinx to tell you its secrets and you shall learn. It is a heavy burden, one that has been lost through the ages, but you will learn the light of truth. Are you ready to start your knowledge quest?”
“Yes,” I answered, “but who are you?”
“To you, I am Thoth the Atlantean. In my Egyptian lifetime I was known as the Keeper of Records. I know all secrets of time and thought, some of which you are about to learn.”
“Thank you for your truth, forgive my persistence but I have one more question. Could we be harmed in any way on this quest?”
“There is always a possibility of danger on any journey. I am sorry but this knowledge does not come easily. I am leaving now but before you ascend, pick up the four crystals on the floor at the back of this room. Each of you must carry one at all times. It will protect and guide you. The knowledge you obtain will also be stored in these crystals, have care with them.” With that he was gone.
As the light in the walls receded, everyone got up. I walked to the back of the room and as Thoth had said, there were four crystals lying on the floor waiting to be picked up. I reviewed everything again.
Ricky with excitement in his voice, “We just entered the Twilight Zone and your mask was the key.”
I touched my face.
Josi looking at me, “I saw the mask melt into your face once Thoth was present, as if it lies underneath the skin.”
“I should have asked Thoth about the mask. Ricky, that wasn’t just a dream at the De Young Museum, I’ve carried that mask with me all this time.” That explains a lot of things.
J. J., taking a torch from its holder, “I’m concerned about this journey we are about to partake in.”
There was a quick discussion and it was decided we had no choice but to proceed. We each took a crystal or rather the crystals chose us then we started up the staircase.