Dawn Of The Mummy

Chapter 5

Chapter Five

ANCIENT EGYPT

The crowd roared as the mighty warrior threw another opponent to the ground. This was the third one to be vanquished in hand-to-hand combat since the competition started.

The victor, Anlet-Un-Ri, did not acknowledge the adulation of those in attendance, but simply turned to the three remaining men waiting in line and signalled for the next one to step forward.

Anlet-Un-Ri stood head and shoulders above most of the other guards who had gathered for the competition. She was a commander of the Pharaoh’s second army and had earned her place among the male soldiers by proving her prowess and bravery on the battlefield.

The Pharaoh had promoted her on the insistence of his secondary wife, for whom Anlet-Un-Ri had once served as personal bodyguard.

However, there were still many among the Pharaoh’s troops who refused to take their orders from a woman, regardless of her rank. Therefore, whenever it was felt necessary, the Pharaoh would arrange a tournament among those soldiers who objected the most, and the six winners would all face Anlet-Un-Ri in single combat.

This was now the third such tournament the Pharaoh had held for the amusement of his people and in the previous two, Anlet-Un-Ri had defeated all those who came against her.

There were those in the Pharaoh’s household who felt that the competition was unnecessary, as the only reason Anlet-Un-Ri had to rise to the challenge was as a result of her s*x. No male soldier had ever been challenged in such a manner.

But what no one else knew was that Anlet-Un-Ri had herself suggested to the Pharaoh that the competition take place. She had a thirst for battle which, between skirmishes, she found hard to quench.

The next challenger took two paces towards the female warrior. He was a large man by any standard, well over six feet tall, with broad shoulders and huge arms, but as he approached Anlet-Un-Ri, the expression on her face made his knees buckle beneath him.

There were those among the crowd who noticed his hesitation, and some began to call out to him, mocking his lack of steadfastness.

The warrior could feel the blood rising inside him and his face flushed with a mixture of anger and humiliation.

As the chanting from the crowd grew in volume, the challenger sprang forward. His speed and agility were commendable for such a large man, and before she had a chance to counter his move, the man had Anlet-Un-Ri in a vice-like grip, with his arms clasped around her waist; pinning her arms to her sides.

The soldier heaved and pushed to try to bring the big woman down, but she wrapped her leg around his, preventing the move. As he struggled in vain to topple the large woman, the crowd cheered even louder and laughed at his pitiful efforts.

Refusing to accept being outmanoeuvred, the man pushed forward for all he was worth. But, even with only one leg on the ground, the giant female still managed to keep his efforts at bay.

Finally, he let go, and stood there before his opponent, breathing heavily. His bronzed chest rose and fell as he sucked in air, the perspiration dripping down him.

For her part, Anlet-Un-Ri merely stood her ground, smirking down at him.

It was then that the last two combatants came towards him, brandishing swords and spears.

The rules of the tournament allowed for the challengers to decide what weapons they were going to use, and until now, all the others had unsuccessfully tried brute force.

As the last two soldiers reached their colleague, one of them called to him and handed him a sword.

The three of them stood there, beneath the blazing sun, flaunting their weapons in front of the unarmed woman.

The crowd jeered loudly, protesting to the Pharaoh to stop the fight and punish the three men for not following the rules. But the Pharaoh merely studied the stance of the female warrior and smiled to himself when he saw she displayed no fear at the prospect of facing all three men alone.

Even so, the code of combat demanded that the three men wait until their foe chose her weapon before they attacked. But, before she had a chance to move, they advanced, circling around her.

The crowd was going crazy.

Weapons were thrown into the arena to allow Anlet-Un-Ri to even up the fight. But she chose to ignore them and stood her ground, her arms outstretched, her legs braced, as she moved her head from side to side, following the men’s progress.

Without warning, as one, they attacked.

Anlet-Un-Ri stood still for a split second longer, and a loud gasp rose from those in attendance, convinced that she was not going to defend herself.

Sensing her chance, the female warrior grabbed hold of the closest spear coming at her from her right and used it to swing its holder off his feet and send him crashing into his colleague at his side.

As both men sprawled to the floor, Anlet-Un-Ri quickly turned her body sideways-on to the first combatant who was now lunging at her with his sword.

She grabbed him by his wrist and twisted hard. The man screamed out as the sword fell from his hand and landed on the ground. Still holding his wrist, Anlet-Un-Ri slapped the man around the face with her free hand, back and forth, as the crowd chanted for her.

When she was finished, the man fell to his knees, holding his broken wrist.

The other two soldiers had, by now, reformed and each grabbed a sword from those the crowd had hurled into the arena.

They took up positions on either side of the female warrior, now determined to make their strike count.

This time, Anlet-Un-Ri retrieved the sword she had taken from the first soldier and twirled it back and forth in her hand, making it swish ever louder as the speed of her movements increased.

The soldiers looked at one another, each willing the other to strike first.

The first soldier, who was still lying on the ground at his victor’s feet, yelled at them to attack. The two men raised their weapons and shouted aggressively as they lunged toward their target.

Anlet-Un-Ri moved with such speed, it looked as if her sword was in two places at once. She met each strike as the two men rained blows down on her, forcing them to move back in fear of their lives.

As the three fought, the soldier on the ground slid along the sand, his broken wrist held firmly against his chest. As he reached out for a fallen sword, Anlet-Un-Ri’s sandaled foot slammed down on his good wrist, pinning it, and the sword, to the ground.

Seizing their opportunity, the other two men moved in, swinging their swords through the air as if they were slicing through a veil.

Holding back, Anlet-Un-Ri stayed poised until she saw her chance of attack.

With one swing of her sword, she decapitated the nearer of the two soldiers.

His head bounced along the floor before coming to rest, with his lifeless eyes staring off to one side.

The movement was so swift that it took everyone by surprise.

For a moment, the crowd fell silent from the shock. Then they began to cheer once more.

The decapitated man stood in position for what seemed like an age before his headless body collapsed to the floor.

The second soldier, seeing the fate of his comrade, dropped his sword and ran towards the crowd, waving his arms for them to grant him a path to safety.

All eyes were on the fleeing soldier, so no one noticed Anlet-Un-Ri lift her arm back and fling her sword powerfully after him. The weapon turned end over end as it flew through the air before entering the back of the running man’s head and exiting via his open mouth.

Again, the crowd went silent for a moment, before a chant began to erupt through those gathered, insisting that the female warrior deal with the soldier she had pinned down beneath her.

Anlet-Un-Ri waited for several minutes, allowing the waves of cheers from the crowd to wash over her, and cover her with glory.

Finally, she bent down and picked up the sword for which her assailant had been reaching.

The soldier begged and pleaded for his life, with tears streaming down his cheeks.

He began to pedal his legs frantically against the sand in a vain effort to escape, but with his good wrist held firmly in place under the large woman’s foot, he soon realised he was going nowhere.

Anlet-Un-Ri raised her sword above her head, ready to strike the fatal blow.

The crowd cheered her on, eager for another kill to conclude the tournament.

But, after a moment, she tossed the sword to one side.

The spectators were obviously disappointed, but she was not fighting for their amusement.

The whimpering soldier thanked her for her compassion, and vowed to follow her on the battlefield, wherever she went.

But Anlet-Un-Ri was oblivious to his words.

She removed her foot from his hand and bent down. Grabbing him by his ears, she hoisted him up to his feet.

The man screamed as one pain replaced another.

Without pausing, the female warrior spun the man around, wrapped an arm across his neck and hoisted him off his feet as she squeezed his throat.

She held him there while he kicked and bucked in her grasp, his eyes growing wide in fear and panic.

Eventually, he stopped moving, and his lifeless body hung limp in her arms.

Anlet-Un-Ri held him there for a moment longer before releasing his corpse and letting it slump to the ground.

The roar from the crowd was deafening, but the warrior refused to acknowledge their adulation.

Instead, she walked over to the tented area where the Pharaoh sat with his entourage and stood before him to offer her lowest bow.

The Pharaoh stood and held out his arms for the crowd to be silent.

They obeyed immediately.

“Once more, my great warrior Anlet-Un-Ri has proved herself worthy to stand side by side with my army and defeat my enemies. We are proud and honoured to have her among our ranks, leading my second army.”

The crowd cheered.

The Pharaoh allowed them to continue for a while, even though he knew that his champion would not bask in such glory.

Finally, he held his hand up for silence once more.

“But after today, having witnessed her immense proficiency in the field of combat against some of my finest soldiers, I hereby announce that when we next go into battle, Anlet-Un-Ri will march as the first female commander of my first army.”

Another cheer rang out from the gathering, this one even louder still.

While the crowd cheered and clapped, the Pharaoh beckoned for his champion to approach him. As she did, he turned to one of his house guards who handed him a magnificent-looking sword, the handle of which was encrusted with precious stones.

For the first time, Anlet-Un-Ri appeared overwhelmed.

As she graciously received her weapon, she thanked her king and strapped it to her side. She removed the mighty sword from its scabbard to admire it, and as she did, the noise from the crowd rose even higher.

Anlet-Un-Ri held the magnificent weapon above her head, and, although it was too slight for anyone to notice, a smile spread across her lips.