Somewhere above the desert – 04:26 AM
The sky cracked open.
At first, it was just static—shortwave interference, comms going fuzzy across every Egyptian military channel.
Then the blackout hit.
Satellites dropped offline. GPS died. Radar scrambled.
Within seconds, jets began falling out of the sky like burning birds.
In Cairo, a deep, bone-shaking hum vibrated through the buildings. It wasn't an explosion.
It was a pulse.
Egyptian Army Broadcast – Emergency Channel 1
"—Repeat: All civilians must shelter in place.
Do not attempt to leave your homes.
Avoid rooftops. Avoid glass.
This is not a drill."
Military Base – 6th of October City
General Nabil stared at a blank monitor, drenched in sweat.
Three screens had exploded. Half the base had lost power.
Behind him, a civilian woman was shouting at two officers, trying to be heard over the alarms.
"I'm telling you—he knew this would happen!"
"Ma'am, please sit down—"
"I am Dr. Sarah Arshur. My husband wrote three classified papers on anomalous geological cavities beneath Giza! You think this is random? He predicted this."
One officer glanced at the general.
Sarah stepped forward.
"He called them the False Pharaohs. He said they were sealed, not gone. And if they rise… we're not prepared."
From outside, a BOOM shook the entire building.
Screams.
Gunfire.
And then… silence.
The room lights flickered.
Sarah's voice dropped.
"They're here."
Southern Desert – Operation Eclipse Unit 3 – 05:02 AM
Corporal Hossam's entire unit was gone.
Torn apart in less than thirty seconds.
The sand still sizzled with blood. Their radios? Melted. Guns? Jammed like they'd rusted in an instant.
They never saw the attackers coming.
Just shadows. Floating. Hooded. Wrapped in gold.
He was the last one left.
Pinned behind a half-flipped Humvee, breathing through blood and dirt.
His ears were ringing.
And his K9 unit, Zaki, wouldn't stop growling.
The dog stood perfectly still in front of him, hackles up, teeth bared—but not barking.
Just waiting.
The humming returned.
And out of the dunes… they came.
Three of them.
Priests.
They didn't walk. They hovered inches above the ground, moving slow and smooth like silk in water. Their robes shifted with no wind. Their hands glowed with sickly green symbols.
Corporal Hossam raised his sidearm with shaking hands.
One priest raised a finger—and every nerve in Hossam's body froze. His gun dropped.
He couldn't scream. Couldn't even think.
Zaki stepped forward. Just one step.
And the priests stopped.
They turned their heads toward the dog.
For the first time… they hesitated.
Then, without a word, they vanished.
The pulse stopped.
The air cleared.
And Hossam collapsed, sobbing into Zaki's fur, clutching the only living soul still breathing beside him.
Meanwhile – Inside a War Room, Cairo
General Nabil finally looked at Dr. Sarah Arshur.
"What exactly did your husband say?"
She stared at the blinking red lights on the last working panel.
"He said when the Scarab returns, and the drums rise from the sand—
They won't come for land.
They'll come for blood."