The Great Pyramid V

The Great Pyramid V (also known as Page 5: Pyramid Guardian and Page 6: Secret of the Pyramid) is the fifth checkpoint in The Great Pyramid.
==Dialogue==
===Start===
Faust
: "It's true! It really is the storied pyramid... I..." Usually so eloquent, Faust is at a loss for words. The sight of this colossus, and all that it means to him, briefly overcomes the scholar's ability to process and explain what he's experiencing.
: "I cannot believe it! It is a gift, a jewel of unsurpassed beauty! Nothing, not even the passage of time, has affected it. Wonderful! Simply wonderful!" The old scholar, rejuvenated by his discovery, exclaims it to the four winds.
Sphinx
: "Halt, traveler." Engrossed in the joy of his discover, Faust is blind at first to the massive figure that drops from the sky like a boulder in front of him.
: "I am the Sphinx, Guardian of the Pyramid. Reveal your name and your purpose here or face a swift and painful death." The towering creature, clearly angered by the intrusion, glares at Faust with eyes like daggers.
Faust
: "O Mighty Guardian, I am Faust, scholar of the Ivory Tower. I only wish to marvel at this spectacle of the ancient's achievements. I mean no harm or offense in being here." Faust speaks clearly and calmly, hoping that an air of politesse will spare him a lengthy battle with this fearsome creature.
Sphinx
: "The Ivory Tower... that vast repository of books and scholars, the place they call the Palace of Knowledge? Scholar of falsehoods, you are a worm who thinks himself a serpent." Hate in its eyes, the Sphinx glowers at the dark energy pulsing around Faust, summoning with one gesture an army of beasts to block his path.
Faust
: "Did it really have to be this way?" Faust mutters, disappointed. He doesn't wish to fight, but neither does he wish to die here, in the wake of such a momentous discovery. A fierce struggle ensues in the shadow of the pyramid.
===Against <Feline Emperor> Tigerius Caesar===
===Finish===
Sphinx
: "Such power lies in your hands, traveler. It seems that I misjudged you: you are no worm that thinks itself a serpent. You are a demon that thinks itself a man." Badly wounded but determined, the Sphinx drags itself once again to block Faust's path to the pyramid.
Faust
: "You are mistaken. I am no demon. I'm..." Faust begins to explain, but cuts himself off at a sharp glance from the Sphinx.
Sphinx
: "If you are a true scholar, then answer my riddle. But if you fail, you shall never reach the pyramid." The Sphinx has suffered significant injuries, but Faust can see that it can still cause him serious harm if provoked. He listens carefully.
: "What creature walks on four legs in the morning, two legs at noon and three legs in the evening?" The Sphinx recites its riddle slowly and deliberately, still hatefully staring at the silent Faust. In over one thousand years guarding the pyramid, the Sphinx had met no man or woman who could answer the riddle bestowed upon it by the Goddess of the Arts.
Faust
: "Haha," Faust chuckles to himself before letting his glee burst forth in a full roar. "HAHAHAHA!!!" The Sphinx and its ancient riddle had clearly never encountered a soul from the modern age. There wasn't a school child in all the world who didn't know the answer. As the Sphinx licks its stone lips and crouches down in a pounce, Faust wipes the tears from his eyes and gives his answer.
Sphinx
: "The answer is... man." The Sphinx is in awe and a little afraid of Faust, hearing him answer so quickly. This riddle had baffled the world's greatest minds for centuries, but this human, brimming with demonic energy, treated it like a simple arithmetic problem. He may bring more danger to this land than anticipated, but he had answered the riddle, and so the Sphinx was forced to let him pass.
: "Very well, scholar," it proclaimed, spitting the last word out with barely-veiled disdain. "You may proceed. Beyond the pyramids you will come to an oasis. There you will find a suitable ending to your desert journey." With this, the Sphinx unfolds its wings and flies skyward, out of Faust's way at last.
Faust
: He waves to it as it soars away, but his eyes darken. He mutters to himself as the black energy around him begins to coalesce. "Is mankind doomed... doomed to walk forever in shadow? Or does a new dawn await us on the other side?"
==Navigation==
Category:Gaia Chronicle Checkpoints
Category:The Great Pyramid