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Posted by Muppet from dialup115.tattooine.kingston-internet.net on December 22, 1999 at 16:11:28:

Hello!

First, I'd like to say hi to the people that I used to talk to on this forum - I have been away for quite some time...

Anyway, a long, long time ago I posted the first um....13 chapters of an Indy fanfic I'd been working on. For various reasons I didn't have chance to work on it for about four/five months, but I've now got time to finish it off.

For those that haven't read it yet (or those who want to refresh their memories) here is Chapter 1 - please let me know what you think about it, ideas, opinions, criticsm, etc.?

I've taken some liberties with this story; most have been used at one time or another - Indy is older, Marcus is dead, set Indy's college in Boston, etc. I hope the story comes out okay though.

The story isn't a conventional follow-on chapter one; each chapter mixes past and present. I made it so that each chapter can work on its own, but at the same time is part of one big story.

I hope you enjoy it! :)

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Chapter One: Boston, 1956
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Indiana Jones was dead.

In his place stood Henry Jones, Jnr. A respectable man in a neat white suit, wearing small glasses and carrying the day’s edition of the Boston Times. The only trace of his adventurous past his fedora, which although battered and torn, sat at an angle on his head.

"...and next week the myth of Excalibur..."

For once, Indiana - as he was rarely called these days - left the classroom first, surprising his students who were eager to leave themselves. He scuttled down the corridor of the college, reaching a door with a frosted glass window, with the name “Anthony Brody” written across it. Knocking once, Indy entered the room.

"Good morning, Ind...Henry"

"Morning, Anthony"

"Finished class already?"

"I dismissed myself" smiled Indy, sitting down opposite Anthony’s desk. As he sat down, he said to Anthony "I take it there’s no exciting news today?"

Anthony smirked. "Is there ever?" asked Indy

"Not like the old days, eh?"

"The old days?" Indy grinned. "Watch who you’re calling old". Indy stood up. "But if you want to explore the world, go ahead. I’ve done my fair share"

"And miss out on these thrilling essays?" asked Anthony, waving a bundle of papers marked with thick red D minuses in the air.

"See you later, old man" joked Anthony.

As Indy shut the door behind him, he thought about what Anthony had said. "The old days". Suddenly, a memory; a flashback, hit him...

. . .

1936. Egypt.

Indiana Jones wiped the sweat from his forehead. For a moment - a brief second - he had time to get his breath back. Being chased through the desert was not his idea of a fun life.

When he had stepped off the boat at Cairo, he had a simple aim; to find and explore the ancient pyramid of the Pharaoh Kanuiis. A simple enough quest - if the pyramid was indeed the hiding place for the Kanuiis Manuscript; said to hold the true history of the pyramids.
What a prize that would be.

It would make Indy the most famous archaeologist in the world - and provide him with the funds for more expeditions - at least under Indy’s guidance the artifacts would wind up in museums rather than the back pockets of greedy grave robbers.

With money and lies and sheer luck, Indy had travelled to the site of a small cluster of pyramids outside of Giza for next to nothing. Armed only with his whip, his gun and his quick-thinking, Indy had entered the pyramids.

But now Indy was trapped. His exploration had been discovered, and the man who found him had a twenty-strong team of locals racing after Indy. The situation no longer seemed worth dying for.

The manuscript had been a hoax. It didn’t exist. All Indy found were dead kings and ancient dust. Indy could have taken the disappointment, had it not been for the fact that someone now wanted him dead.

That someone was Rene Belloq. A once-useful archaeologist, Belloq had quite easily crossed the line and descended into the life of a professional grave robber; raping the past and selling the discoveries he made.

Belloq and his band of locals - twenty in total - had chased Indy into the pyramid where he was now hiding. Maybe he had given them the slip, thought Indy, but outside he heard footsteps and voices.

Rene Belloq, dressed inappropriately for the heat in a loose beige shirt and trousers, ordered his men to wait at the opening of the pyramid in which Indy was hiding. Loading his revolver, Belloq declared that "Jones is mine", and ventured into the depths of the pyramid of Kanuiis.

The pyramid was dark, but Belloq could make out the walls of the corridors and large rooms. He could not, however, see Indiana Jones. He was crouched behind a large rectangular tomb.

"Come out, come out, Jones, wherever you are"
Silence.
"There’s no escape, Jones"
Silence.

Indy was trying to keep as quiet as possible, hiding behind the tomb. But the spider crawling across the top of the tomb had other ideas.
Moments later, it fell onto Indy’s hat. With a reflex action, Indy took his hat off, throwing the spider into the distance.

Even the small sound that it created was enough to alert Belloq, who ran to the entrance to the room in which Indy was hiding. Belloq saw a sqaure room, with a tomb in the middle.

He knew Indy was in here. "I may only let you live if you show yourself". Indy had no choice. Slowly, he crawled upwards, emerging from behind the tomb into the line of Belloq’s revolver, which was aimed at him already.

Belloq was too far away from Indy to be able to make a move, so Indy had to play it safe.

"Want to let me go?" asked Indy.

"You’re far too trusting, Jones. I lied". Belloq had Indy right where he wanted him; ready to kill him. Rene talked, but all the way kept his revolver aimed at Indy, ready to shoot if Indy should make the slightest movement.

"Do you know why the Egyptians built these magnificent buildings?" Belloq asked.

"Boredom?"

"How amusing, Jones. They were tombs. When the great kings died, this is where they were buried. All the ancients rest in peace here."

"Fascinating...you should be a teacher"

"You are the one who chose the mundane life, Jones. You could have had it all"

Indiana Jones laughed out loud.

"You think my wealth, my success if funny? You are a very confused man, Jones...but I will now make your next decision for you,” Belloq grinned. “I would very much like it for you to be buried here with the great kings..."

Then there was a loud gush of wind outside. It was horrific. A strong gust that rocketed through the cracks and the walls of the pyramids, creating an almost unbearable wail. It died down moments later, giving Belloq to chance to continue. "The wind is picking up...I should get back to Cairo as soon as possible" said Belloq.

"Why don’t you just kill me then?"

"Truly you have no culture, Jones. I like to make sure I am doing something worthwile. I like to know that you are scared of dying...it makes it much more satisfying".

Cries, shouts, wails suddenly sounded.

It was coming from outside. Belloq turned, off-guard. Those voices belonged to his men. He ran down the dark corridor, to the light at the mouth of the pyramid. There he saw his men; the locals, running away. Translating their cries, Belloq understood their cries to mean that the wailing wind noise had been interpreted as a warning from Kanuiis - they were running home. “Fools!” snapped Belloq.

"Just you and me now, Belloq. I prefer those odds".

"What...?" asked Belloq, turning around. But as he turned, his face was met with the butt of Indy’s gun, which swung down, knocking Belloq to the floor, out cold. The manuscript may have been a hoax, but Belloq still wanted Indy dead.

Emerging outside into the sun once more, Indy thought he was safe with the local men gone. But he remembered one small problem - his lift home, Mullah, was a local too. Indy watched as a frightened Mullah and his camels rode off into the distance. Indy knew that Belloq would wake up soon, and hurridely glanced round. There had to be something to escape in. There was.

A truck was parked nearby. It was being guarded by a heavy-set man wielding a gun. This was going to be tricky. Indy didn’t know how he was going to get the truck without being seen...so he didn’t try to conceal himself. “Excuse me...” he shouted, approaching the truck.
The man turned quickly, lifting his gun.

"Wait..." shouted Indy.

The man shouted something in Arabic to Indy. He didn’t understand, but by the man’s actions could see that he wanted him to stop.
Indy stopped.

The man kept shouting, kept his gun aimed at Indy. He started pointing at Indy’s gun. He wanted Indy to drop it onto the sandy floor. Indy’s hands lowered. One hand was about to take hold of the gun and drop it. The other was about to take hold of the whip on Indy’s belt. The man shouted again.

"All right! All right! Pushy people" muttered Indy.

He took the gun out of its holster and threw it to the floor. The truck guard grinned, and was about to pull the trigger on his own gun, when suddenly Indy grabbed the whip, cracking it forwards.
It wrapped around the guard’s hand. Indy pulled the whip back quickly, the gun flew into the distance, lost in the sand. The man raced up to Indy, fists ready to right.

"Let’s not get violent" said Indy.

The man shouted at him, furious.

"Now wait a minute..."

The man, clearly enraged, shouted again.

Indy didn’t understand. "Should have studied Arabic better" thought Indy.

The man grabbed Indy’s shirt collar, shaking him violently. Indy gave up patience, and with a sharp right hook, knocked the shouting man out. "Boring conversation anyway"

Indy rifled through the man’s pockets, taking out the truck keys. He quickly clambered inside, trying to start the engine.
It whirred pathetically...nothing.

In the wing mirror, Indy could see Belloq’s distant figure rapidly approaching; he was awake. Indy turned the engine over again with the keys; silence.

Belloq loaded his gun.

Sweating now, Indy started hitting the dashboard. "Come on, you heap of junk!". All the time, Belloq was getting nearer and nearer.

Indy turned the keys again.

Belloq pulled the trigger on his revolver.

The truck started - at last! - and shot off with an amazing speed. The bullets from Belloq’s gun missing their target and ripping through the truck’s canopy. Laughing manically, Indy raced back to Giza. Belloq could only watch as Indiana Jones disappeared into the distance; he’d escaped.

. . .

Indiana Jones sat down in the professor’s lounge, helping himself to a coffee. Enough reminiscing of places seen, people met, death escaped, for one day; at least he would never be in such a situation again.

When Marcus died, it was as if he took Indy’s adventuring spirit with him. The Ark, the Grail, Marcus had helped out on Indy’s greatest adventures; without him Indy’s enthusiasm had dwindled.

As he flicked mindlessly through the Times, something caught Indy’s eye. Peeling the page back, he saw an article headed “ARCHAELOGIST ANNOUNCES MAJOR EXPEDITION”. It seemed that a motley crue had assembled itself to set out and loacte the fabled Temple Of Rhan; the resting place of an ancient cult leader said to have wielded great powers. The sort of thing a younger Indy might have gone after too, had he been in shape and willing. Better to leave the adventures to those fools that wanted to follow rumours and maps, trails to buried treasure.

Just as Indy was about to flick over the papers of the Times once more and get back to work, the last line of the article seemed to spring off the page. Its words small, printed - to Indy they were as large and life and twice as bold. "Leading the expedition..." the sentence began.

It was the concluding two words that kept Indy focused; kept him staring at the page.

Two words, one name:

Louis Belloq.

================================
To be continued...?
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-Muppet-


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