PIGEON FORGE — Our eyes rebelled against the darkness, racing around frantically searching for any sliver of light to split the inky black as our guide cried out in panic. And then the rumbling started.

Only minutes before, Mountain Press photographer Curt Habraken and I had walked inside the archaeological site, only the second and third men to do so in a thousand years. As we crept deeper into the cavernous stone crypt, toward a gleaming gilt statue of one of Egypt's revered pharaohs, our flashlights had begun to flicker and then, horrifyingly, went out for good.

That's when the darkness wrapped around us like a blanket that somehow made us colder. Suddenly, a deep, rumbling voice boomed through the room, while light flashed haphazardly against the walls. It was the pharaoh, who explained he had some challenges we'd have to conquer before we made it out of his final resting place — alive, hopefully.

For the next half hour or so we completed his tasks, solving puzzles, testing our strength and challenging our brains to figure out the riddles laid before us. With every new test the danger seemed to grow, with floor tiles giving way, ceilings collapsing and the danger of being trapped inside the late king's tomb in total darkness forever.

Throughout it all, the fourth member of our party, developer Ned Vickers, offered helpful hints and watched our reactions to each new happening with noticeably excited expectation.

"What did you think?" he asked, almost exclaimed, when we had finally found our way through the last stone door.

Five years in the making

This is the aptly-named Tomb, the area's newest attraction, which has sprung up on one end of Waldens Landing. The gag used by both Vickers and the staff of more than a dozen guides, who will soon be leading folks through the same challenges we faced, is that it's actually been there all along.

"It was discovered 10 years ago and then it sunk into the ground until it reemerged recently," Vickers says, tongue-in-cheek. "I can't believe the Ogles [previous owners of the Waldens Landing site] didn't tell me anything about this when we bought the property. Fortunately, nobody was in this part of the building when it reemerged. It would not have been good to have a pharaoh's tomb to pop up in the middle of an ice cream shop."

It's been a couple weeks since the pair of retail spaces that have become home to Tomb looked like what they used to be, including an ice cream shop. With the remarkable transformation that has taken place and the convincing theming, Vickers realizes when I question him about the change that he had forgotten what the space used to be.

And that's the idea, as Joe Botsch, who oversaw training the new guides, puts it.

Cultivating first impressions

Mountain Press staffers aren't the only ones Vickers has been watching as they made their first trip through the pharaoh's final resting place. He's also kept an eye on employees when Botsch introduced them to Tomb.

"They've been amazed," Vickers says. "They've been really excited when they've seen the level of theming inside. They've loved the experience. All of it helps contribute to that suspension of disbelief that is so important for this. People lose track of where they are and they're just having a great time."

It's an experience Vickers wants as many local folks as possible to have before the stone portals of Tomb roll open to the public for the first time Thursday. In that interest, the attraction will be open for free to Sevier County residents with proof of residency from 6-10 p.m. Monday and from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday.

The gratis admission isn't just an invitation for some fun, though it is that. It's also given in hopes those who go through will become the attraction's best and most visible salespeople.

"We want to encourage Sevier County residents to come," Vickers says. "We think they'll have a great time and it's good for our guides because they get more experience. More important, they'll know what Tomb is and, we hope, will think it's a great attraction unlike anything else in this area, like we do. Then, when tourists ask them, 'What's that pyramid about?' They won't say, 'I think it's a buffet or something.'"

When tickets do go on sale, as they will starting Thursday, they'll be $12.99 for everyone, regardless of age. Waldens Landing is located on the Parkway between Community Center Drive and Wears Valley in Pigeon Forge.

"I think people love it because of the immersive nature of it," Botsch explains. "People really feel like they're in an Indiana Jones movie or something like that. It's amazing how into it people get. All of a sudden you see a transformation. You see quiet people getting loud, figuring out the puzzles. They really show off their strengths."

Botsch has worked with Tomb for two years, getting involved with the attraction where it started, in Boston, Mass. He was there when Vickers was first introduced to Tomb.

"We made a trip to Boston specifically to see Tomb. We had heard about it and we were that interested in it," Vickers says. "When we went through it, I knew we had to bring it here."

Vickers was certain from that first experience he had found something that could be a winner in Pigeon Forge. Having made his first trip here just a few days ago, Botsch now agrees.

"It fits like a glove here," he says. "I think people will really love it."

- dhodges@themountainpress.com