"We're almost there," Reed Richards said, his eyes focused ahead as the golden silhouettes of the Great Pyramids pierced the horizon. The sun hung low, casting long, majestic shadows across the desert.
The Fantasticar hummed steadily through the air. Reed sat at the helm, with Susan Storm beside him. Behind them, Ben Grimm lounged in his seat arms crossed, unimpressed by the heat.
Johnny Storm, meanwhile, wasn't seated at all.
He soared alongside the craft, trailing orange fire and performing corkscrews in the sky. "Woo! Bet the pharaohs never saw anything like this!"
"Torch, you keep twirling like that and I'll start hoping you crash into a sand dune," Ben grumbled, leaning over the side. "Show-off."
Susan rolled her eyes. "Johnny, please don't startle the locals."
Reed barely glanced away from the controls. "We're nearing Luxor. Nabil said he's at a new excavation site just outside the city."
"Remind me again why we're here?" Johnny asked, looping once more before slowing to match the Fantasticar's pace.
"A friend of mine Dr. Nabil El Sayed," Reed replied. "He's an archaeologist. He reached out requesting urgent help. He didn't say much only that it couldn't wait."
Moments later, the Fantasticar descended and touched down near the outskirts of the excavation site. Dust billowed in plumes as workers looked up from their tools some shielding their eyes, others pausing to whisper. Whether it was the car, their bright costumes, or simple recognition —the Fantastic Four were known around the globe—it was hard to tell.
Johnny landed with a grin and a mock bow. "Hello and yes, you are not mistaken. It is I, the Human Torch."
Reed stepped out, surveying the dig. The workers were clustered around what appeared to be a half-exposed monument shaped eerily like the Sphinx, yet different: smoother, more refined.
"Oh, cool," Johnny said, walking toward it. "Did they find another Sphinx?"
Reed frowned. "Nabil didn't mention this in his message…"
Just then, a familiar voice called out: "Reed!"
An Egyptian man with a sun-scorched face and kind eyes ran toward them, arms outstretched. Reed smiled and stepped forward.
"Nabil," he said warmly, embracing the man.
"You came," Nabil said, relieved. "Thank you, my friend."
Reed turned to gesture to the others. "This is Susan my wife"
"Ben Grimm, and that's Johnny—"
"The Human Torch!" Johnny added with a grin.
"A pleasure," Nabil said. "I know about all of you."
Sue smiled. "Dr. El Sayed, what exactly is this place?"
Nabil's face turned serious. He looked over his shoulder at the partially uncovered statue and lowered his voice.
"I wanted you to see it first, Reed before I show anyone else. What we've found here changes everything we thought we knew about our history."
That got everyone's attention.
Nabil motioned for them to follow. "Come. I'll explain."
Nabil led the Fantastic Four toward the partially unearthed structure.
"This way," he said, his voice low but urgent. A lantern swung in his hand, casting restless shadows on the sand-dusted walls. "As you know, Reed, my expertise is Egyptian mythology. It's my life's work."
Reed nodded, his eyes tracing the intricate hieroglyphs etched into the stone.
"My recent research into a fragmented legend led me here. A forgotten god…"
"The god's name is Ta'Khetu the god of judgment."
Susan tilted her head. "Ta'Khetu? I thought Osiris was the god of judgment."
"You're right, by the conventional account," Nabil replied, glancing back at her. "Ta'Khetu is usually dismissed as a mere helper to Anubis a minor figure in funerary rites. But what I've found suggests otherwise."
"Go on," Reed said, intrigued.
"In the earliest records predynastic, even Ta'Khetu was called the Emerald Judge," Nabil continued.
"He was said to wield a ring of green flame, and even the other gods obeyed his word. During the Old Kingdom, he was revered as judge not only of mortals but of the gods themselves."
"That's a dramatic shake-up in the divine hierarchy." said Johnny.
"It's not unheard of for gods to fall out of favor when dynasties change," Susan added.
"Exactly," Nabil said, nodding as they stepped into a broad chamber. Electric lanterns rigged by the work crew cast steady light over a massive wall at the far end. Its surface was unlike anything they had seen—neither ordinary stone nor familiar metal. It shimmered, a dark alloy shot through with subtle veins of green.
"This," Nabil said reverently, "may be the most intact depiction of Ta'Khetu ever found."
The heroes approached, eyes widening.
"Here," Nabil whispered, pointing to the central relief.
Reed's breath hitched.
The wall portrayed a towering figure, skin etched in emerald hues, arms outstretched. On his chest gleamed a sigil the unmistakable emblem of the Green Lantern Corps. Beneath him, the figure smote a colossal serpent wreathed in flame, its eyes blazing red with malice.
"So… our lost god was a Green Lantern?" Johnny said.
Nabil nodded, excitement shining in his eyes. "If I'd seen this two years ago, I'd have dismissed it as an unknown glyph of ancient Egyptians. But we've all seen that symbol on a green-clad hero who appeared not so long ago."
Reed stepped closer, running a scanner over the wall. "Strange metal," he murmured, analyzing the readings.
"It's unlike anything I've encountered," Nabil said. "This chamber is predynastic. It shouldn't exist. And this alloy… it has no place in early Egyptian history or anywhere on earth. That's why I called you. I need your help understanding it."
Reed straightened, offering a reassuring smile. "I'll figure it out"
=====
Four hours had passed since they first entered the chamber, and Reed Richards had barely budged from the strange wall of shimmering green alloy. A web of sensor cables and compact analytical instruments now surrounded him, their displays casting shifting light across his face.
Johnny had wandered off in search of food an hour earlier. Ben sat nearby, deeply engrossed in one of Nabil's research notebooks.
Susan stood with Nabil, who was speaking excitedly.
"So," Nabil said, "I believe that during the Amarna Period, Akhenaten specifically targeted the cult of Ta'Khetu destroyed their temples, erased their records, perhaps even wiped out an entire city dedicated to him."
"This is why we thought he was a minor deity, not the major one these new findings reveal him to be."
"But why Ta'Khetu in particular?" Susan asked. "Akhenaten suppressed many of the old gods when he elevated Aten. What makes this one stand out?"
Nabil's eyes gleamed. "Because of what I found just before this dig. A temple largely intact belonging to the last known followers of Ta'Khetu. In its deepest sanctum I discovered wall carvings, perfectly preserved and sealed from decay."
Susan leaned closer. "What did they say?"
Nabil glanced at Reed, then back to her. "The carvings spoke of Queen Tiye Akhenaten's mother. They claimed she was a priestess of Ta'Khetu, a devoted servant of the Emerald Judge."
He lowered his voice, almost reverent. "The carvings said Tiye was chosen elevated taken to serve him in his 'emerald realm.'"
Reed finally looked up from his instruments, fully drawn into the conversation.
"And you think that's what turned Akhenaten against the gods," Susan said slowly. "Especially against Ta'Khetu."
Nabil nodded. "It would explain his obsession with abolishing the old pantheon. To Akhenaten, Ta'Khetu was the kidnapper of his mother."
Reed stepped toward them, arms folded. "Nabil… Green Lanterns are an intergalactic peace-keeping force cosmic police, essentially. From what I know, when a Lantern dies, their ring, which is their source of power, chooses a new bearer."
Nabil's eyes widened; he looked like his mind was racing with a million questions as Reed revealed this new information to him.
"Could Tiye have been chosen by a ring?" Sue asked.
"Perhaps Ta'Khetu himself was a Green Lantern assigned here six thousand years ago." she theoried.
"Well that makes sense," Nabil said.
Susan's eyes widened. "So Tiye is chosen by the ring and vanishes, and her son the pharaoh takes it as divine abduction. In grief or anger, he launches a new religion and erases every trace of the Emerald Judge."
Hearing their conversation, Ben spoke up. "Maybe we should just call the man himself—Our Green Lantern. Pretty sure I saw him flyin' over the city yesterday might've even waved."
Reed nodded thoughtfully. "That's actually a good idea, Ben. But—"
Before he could finish, the stone wall beside them began to tremble. With a low rumble, slabs of green alloy ground against ancient hinges, and part of the chamber slid aside, revealing a hidden passageway.
"I already opened the door," Reed finished wryly.
At that exact moment Johnny strolled in, holding two wrapped bundles. "Hey, guess who brought shawarma!" He stopped short when he saw the open wall. "Oh. You figured it out. Neat."
"Nabil, stay here," Reed said, already stepping through the threshold. Susan, Ben, and Johnny followed without hesitation.
The chamber beyond was unlike anything they had seen. Reed tapped a device on his belt, and soft, portable lights flared to life, illuminating the room.
And that's when they saw it.
The walls weren't mere stone they were layered with intricate metal and crystal designs, interwoven with circuitry that shimmered faintly beneath the dust. The ceiling was curved and seamless, etched with glowing lines that pulsed in an eerie rhythm.
Ben whistled.
"This is… far more advanced than I thought," Reed murmured.
He moved to the far end of the room, where a panel glimmered faintly clear like glass, or perhaps some kind of responsive crystal. Gently, he pressed his hand to it.
At his touch, a surge of energy rippled outward. A voice echoed through the chamber in a language they didn't recognize, but two words rang clear:
"Nathaniel Richards."
Reed froze.
"What did it say?" Susan asked, suddenly alarmed.
Before he could answer, a glow rose from the floor beneath them then from the ceiling above and the room began to shift.
Strands of luminous gas enveloped each of them: Susan first, then Ben, then Johnny.
"Reed!" Susan shouted, staring at her glowing hands.
"Everyone, hold on—" Reed yelled, watching his own limbs flicker with light.
Another pulse.
The floor vanished.
The world turned white.
=====
Reed groaned as his eyes fluttered open. He lay on sun-warmed stone. Slowly, he pushed himself upright and blinked at the sight before him.
A sphinx perfectly intact, polished, and pristine rose before him.
Beyond the sphinx loomed a pyramid, smooth and gleaming, far larger than the Great Pyramid at Giza.
Footsteps sounded behind him.
He turned to see Susan, Ben, and Johnny gathering at his side, each of them just as disoriented.
Ben groaned. "I feel like I was hit by a thousand trucks."
Susan steadied herself, gazing around in awe. "Where are we?"
Johnny stared at the shimmering city in the distance and let out a nervous laugh.
"Reed," he said, his voice uncharacteristically serious, "I don't think we're in Kansas anymore."