Michael Belmont and the Tomb of Anubis (The Adventures of Michael Belmont) by Ethan Russell Erway Page B

there for a few seconds, looking through the eyes.
    "I don't see anything unusual," he reported with a frown.   "Just the wall on the other side of the room."   He hopped back down and stood beside them.
    Michael folded his arms and sighed.   He was hoping that Liam would see what he'd seen.   "Well, let me try and get it to work again," he insisted, stepping back up to the statue.   He looked through the eye slits, and it instantly began to glow and vibrate.

    After a moment, the small ball of light appeared.   It drew Michael in, growing larger and larger as he flew toward it.   He was prepared for the experience this time, although it was terribly uncomfortable to lose control and be swept away.
    There was a piercing burst of light. He opened his eyes, allowing them to adjust to the bright world around him.   The sun shone fiercely overhead, and he was standing at the top of some sort of high stone platform.
    Hundreds of steps descended before him, to where a large crowd of people had gathered far below.   They were all chanting, and it only took Michael a moment to realize that he was the object of their praise; they were worshiping him, as well as the man standing at his side.
    It was Horus.   He looked quite different from the last time Michael had seen him.   He had the head of a falcon, but the rest of his body was that of a man, and it wasn't just a mask, his head was literally the head of a falcon.   He was wearing a long, linen skirt, and a few pieces of jewelry.   His swarthy skin glistened under the heat of the fiery Egyptian sun.   In his hand, he carried a scepter; very similar to the one Michael had in his own hand.
    It was all becoming clear, and Michael realized that he'd once again been thrust into the body of Anubis, and he again knew everything that the Egyptian did.   He also knew that as he was standing in front of this crowd, he appeared to them much like his brother, only his own head was that of a jackal.  
    They had both practiced hard to attain the ability to appear this way.   Changing fully into a jackal was easy, natural to him, but to control the change in a limited way, allowing him to appear as part man and part beast, had been quite another story.
    He and Horus had mastered it now, and today as they stood before this crowd, they were being honored in front of the peoples of their nation.
    Their father Osiris walked up behind them.   He placed a hand on each of their shoulders.   Osiris was dressed in a long white robe with a red belt.   On his head was a large white crown with ostrich feathers attached on each side.   His long black pharaoh's beard protruded from his pale, green colored face.
    Michael knew that Anubis loved this man, his father.   But he also knew that he was greatly feared, even by his own sons.   Osiris wielded a great dark power and an insatiable thirst for control.   He was a necromancer and a sorcerer, who had called upon the dark arts and unthinkable forms of evil to serve his purposes.
    At that moment, Anubis was wondering if this man truly had any real love for him or for Horus.   Perhaps they too were nothing more than stepping-stones in his quest for power.
    "My beloved people," Osiris said in a gravelly voice, which echoed down into the valley below, "today the Mighty Ra shines his beloved face upon our wondrous city of Ain Shams, because this is a happy day.   Today I present before you my own dear sons, Horus and Anubis."
    The people cheered loudly at the sound of their names.
    "Like me, they are both powerful gods who have been sent down to you by Ra to bless, guide, and protect you."
    The people roared out in approval.   Michael looked at his brother, and noticed that although he stood there proudly with his head held high, a single tear came flowing down from his large, round eye.
    "My sweet children," Osiris growled on, "you have all heard of the brave and wonderful deeds which have been performed by my sons, and the battles they