They rode for the entire day.
Toward the end of the afternoon, they came upon a Coptic monastery. The alchemist dismounted, and told the escorts they could return to the camp. "From here on, you will be alone," the alchemist said. "You are only three hours from the Pyramids." "Thank you," said the boy. "You taught me the Language of the World." "I only invoked what you already knew." The alchemist knocked on the gate of the monastery. A monk dressed in black came to the gates. They spoke for a few minutes in the Coptic tongue, and the alchemist bade the boy enter. "I asked him to let me use the kitchen for a while," the alchemist smiled. They went to the kitchen at the back of the monastery. The alchemist lighted the fire, and the monk brought him some lead, which the alchemist placed in an iron pan. When the lead had become liquid, the alchemist took from his pouch the strange yellow egg.