Tut (30 page)

Valley of the Kings
—valley in Egypt where over sixty tombs have been discovered, many of these for pharaohs of the Egyptian New Kingdom

THINGS

Book of the Dead
—ancient Egyptian funerary text containing spells to assist a dead person on their journey through the underworld and into the afterlife

Canopic jars
—jars used during mummification to hold the liver, lungs, stomach, and intestines

Eye of Horus
—ancient Egyptian symbol of protection, good health, and power

Sarcophagus
—a funeral box, often carved of stone, which formed the outer layer of protection for a mummy

Shabti
—small figures which were placed in tombs to act as servants for the dead person in the afterlife

Ankh
—ancient Egyptian symbol which represents eternal life

Tiet
—ancient Egyptian symbol; often called “Knot of Isis”

 

KING TUT'S GUIDE TO IMMORTALITY

Hey! King Tut here, and if you've finished the book
Tut: The Story of My Immortal Life
then you probably figured out that I am immortal. True, you could have figured that out just by reading the title, but where is the fun in that? So what is immortal? Well, it means living forever, and that's a mighty long time. I've had lots of practice so far. Three thousand years give or take a few hundred. In the event you're ever thinking about becoming immortal, here are some of my best tips for making the most of your eternal life.

HOBBIES

Maybe the most important tip for a happy immortal future is having lots of hobbies. And when I say lots of hobbies, I mean hundreds and hundreds of hobbies. Always wanted to learn to play the violin? Now is the perfect time. How about solving the Rubik's Cube? Or becoming a kung fu master? With so much time on your hands, there is nothing you can't become the best in the world at doing.

MONEY

Let's face it. Having money solves many of life's simple needs. Like food. And shelter. And that new pair of running shoes you are just dying to have. If you want extra time to spend on all your hobbies, you're going to need cash so you don't have to worry about the basic necessities. The key to making money as an immortal is to think long-term and to be consistent. One day a month, take something that you consider valuable and bury it. This can be a gold coin, a piece of modern art, or even a Tickle Me Elmo doll. I suggest marking the location on a carefully guarded map. Guess what? In one hundred years, your modern art is now an antique. Your gold coin has quadrupled in value. And people will sell their firstborn in order to get the Elmo doll.

TRAVEL THE WORLD

Guess what? It is a big world out there. And you, now being immortal, can see all of it. You can follow summer around the world. You can climb the Himalayas, searching for the Abominable Snowman. You can search for the lost continent of Atlantis. And since money will never be a problem for you, you can do all this while traveling first class.

DON'T BURN BRIDGES

Simply, don't be a jerk. If you make enemies while traveling to a foreign country, it could be centuries before you can show your face there again. Learn the languages where you travel (starting with “thank you”), don't overstay your welcome, and always clean up after yourself.

LIVE LIGHT

You have lots of money. You have lots of time. Don't become a collector of junk. The last thing you want to do with all your time is drag around some ridiculous number of possessions from one place to the next. Set a limit for yourself, like one knick-knack each place you go, and stick to it. The shabtis will thank you.

Hope you enjoy immortality!

 

A TOMB BUILDER'S GUIDE TO DESIGNING KING TUT'S TOMB

Congratulations! You've finally gotten your dream job. You have been assigned to lead the design committee for the tomb of the great pharaoh Tutankhamun. Sure, it will be years before he passes on to the afterlife—he is only a teenager—but as any great architect knows, it is always good to be prepared for any situation. There are so many things to think about. So where to start?

SIZE

A tomb for a pharaoh should be huge! You decide it should have twenty rooms, each filled with treasures. Since the boy king is so young, you will have plenty of time to finish his tomb, so you divide the construction up into stages. The first stage will consist of the entry stairway, the entrance passageway, and four main rooms: the antechamber, the annex, the burial chamber, and the treasury. The other stages can come after you finish these rooms. After much consideration, you decide on the following measurements.

Entry stairway:
6' wide by 16 steps

Entry passageway:
6' wide by 27' deep by 7' high

Antechamber:
26' wide by 12' deep by 9' high

Annex:
15' wide by 9' deep by 9' high

Burial Chamber:
14' wide by 21' deep by 12' high

Treasury:
16' wide by 13' deep by 8' high

LAYOUT

You know that the layout of a tomb is important so the dead pharaoh will properly be able to reach the underworld and pass into the Fields of the Blessed. You decide that the entrance should be from the east, the same way Khepri the giant dung beetle god makes the sun rise each morning. The burial chamber should be at the northwest, and the treasury should be at the northeast. The annex should be in the southwest, and the antechamber should be in the center. You pray for guidance, and the gods seem pleased with your decisions.

PROTECTION

Great! Now that the technical stuff is out of the way, what is the best way to protect this tomb that you've built? For starters, sealed doors at all the main intersections are a must. That way, if thieves do break into the tomb, they may not have the time or equipment to make it to the really special rooms (like the burial chamber or the treasury).

After the sealed doors are in place, a curse inscribed above the entry door is always nice. Statistics show that a powerful curse can keep away over sixty percent of potential thieves. After all, who would want to bring down a curse upon themselves? For great Pharaoh Tutankhamun, you think about the curse for two weeks straight, trying to come up with the perfect words. Finally you have it!

 

Death Shall Come on Swift Wings to Him Who Disturbs the Peace of the King

 

Once the sealed doors and the curse are solidly in place, cover the entire tomb in sand. With luck, nobody will ever find it.

 

 

TUT: THE STORY OF MY IMMORTAL LIFE
PICK YOUR OWN QUEST GAME

You are about to embark on a great adventure as King Tut, Pharaoh of Egypt. Whatever you do, don't turn back. Once you make a choice, it cannot be changed! One path may lead to you saving the world. Another may lead to your doom.

 

CHOOSE WISELY :)

 

It's a big job being Pharaoh, but somebody has to do it. And let's face it. Life as Pharaoh is awesome. People treat you like a rock star! Still, forget taking nice, leisurely walks along the Nile River. Everyone bows to you and wants you to bless their children. But it's good to be famous. You don't mind the attention.

Yet deep in Egypt there is a conspiracy, and you are the only one who can get to the bottom of it. Your people are counting on you. Egypt is counting on you. And the gods are counting on you!

Visit
www.pjhoover.com/tut_games.php
to see if you have what it takes to save Egypt!

 

ALSO BY P. J. HOOVER

Solstice

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

P. J. HOOVER first fell in love with Greek mythology in sixth grade. After a fifteen-year bout as an electrical engineer designing computer chips for a living, P. J. decided to take her own stab at mythology and started writing books for kids and teens. When not writing, P. J. spends time with her husband and two kids and enjoys practicing kung fu, solving Rubik's Cubes, and watching
Star Trek
. She lives in Austin, Texas.

For more information about P. J. (Tricia) Hoover, please visit her website:
www.pjhoover.com
. P. J. is also a member of the Texas Sweethearts & Scoundrels and The Enchanted Inkpot.

 

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously.

TUT: THE STORY OF MY IMMORTAL LIFE

Copyright © 2014 by Patricia Jedrziewski Hoover

All rights reserved.

Cover art by Jim Madson

Illustrations of hieroglyphics and the Eye of Horus by Erik McKenney

A Starscape Book

Published by Tom Doherty Associates, LLC

175 Fifth Avenue

New York, NY 10010

www.tor-forge.com

eBooks may be purchased for business or promotional use. For information on bulk purchases, please contact Macmillan Corporate and Premium Sales Department by writing to [email protected].

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Hoover, P. J. (Patricia J.), 1970–

   Tut: the story of my immortal life / P.J. Hoover. — First edition.

       p.  cm.

   ISBN 978-0-7653-3468-8 (hardcover)

   ISBN 978-1-4668-1475-2 (e-book)

   1.  Tutankhamen, King of Egypt—Juvenile fiction.   [1.  Tutankhamen, King of Egypt—Fiction.   2.  Middle schools—Fiction.   3.  Schools—Fiction.   4.  Immortality—Fiction.   5.  Horemheb, King of Egypt—Fiction.   6.  Mythology, Egyptian—Fiction.   7.  Adventure and adventurers—Fiction.]   I.  Title.

PZ7.H7713Tut 2014

[Fic]—dc23

2014015848

e-ISBN 9781466814752

First Edition: September 2014