1117 BC

The oasis was not supposed to be there. He slipped around the outcropping, and peaked quietly around.

There was an Edomite woman there, as naked as she could be, dripping water. She had obviously been taking a dip in the water. He let his gaze focus on her longer than courtesy called for, for she had a perfect form, as perfect as a woman could have.

She turned and looked at him and smiled
Warrior, come here

He loosened his sword, just in case she had some cousins on the other side of those date trees, but went willingly. It was fairly obvious that he was indeed a warrior. His hair was shorn close to his head to prevent an enemy to get a handful, and the scars he had up and down his arms were testaments to the men he had killed; a ritual scarring inspired by similar scars some of the southern Egyptian mercenary outriders had started using. The Levites, tribal priests, might sneer at such despoilment of his flesh, but he didn't care what they babbled on about in the first place.

As he approached, she walked calmly to her belongings and started dressing. He admired the sweet bounce of her as she covered up, not rushing, but not making a show of it. He didn't bother turning away as she had bent to retrieve those clothes, flashing a bit of Paradise.

She beckoned to a plate of food
You should stop what you're doing and stay with me. The water is always the right feel, food is ready at hand, and the nights will never be cold

All of that sounded good, but there was something he wanted to do first, up in the hills beyond the oasis. There had been a prophet in the village...another gibbering fool screaming about the destruction of Israel if the tribes took a king. That was no business of his, but the prophet did speak of the Well of Souls...and where it was.

That was a different story. He didn't think for a second that Yahweh had set a cave full of souls, ready for birth, in the hills. On the other hand, such a story would keep the gullible away from a hidden trove of Egyptian gold. If the tribes united under a king, he knew the tax farmers would be close on hand afterwards with their hands out and the soldiers behind them.

A secret trove of gold down his own well would be nice to counter the poor soil of his family's land.

He told the woman he'd be back when he could, but that he had to move now. She just shrugged
Your choice is your own, warrior

Past the oasis, the directions the prophet had given him started making sense again.

He found the sheer cliff where he expected to, and threw the grappling hook at the two rocks at the corner of the top. The hook caught well on his second throw. He climbed as quietly as he could, keeping an eye out for guards at the top. As he neared the top of the rope, he pulled his sword out, and lunged over the top of the cliff, preparing to stab as needed. There was no one there.

Once upon his feet, he saw the cave opening, well protected from the weather by an overhang. Inside, he found a stairway, well cut out of the stone. He moved down the stairs, prepared for any guards. There had to be some people here, for there was a bright glow from beyond the turning staircase...either a lot of torches, or the reflection of gold from lots of torches.

Despite his urgency to see what lie beneath, he still moved carefully to the last corner before the bottom. As he turned the corner, he dropped his sword
ohh, fuck ME

---

2017

The oasis wasn't on the sat feed, and wasn't on the map. He creeped through the date trees, moving slowly.

There was a Bedouin woman there, coming out of the waters. He let his vision linger on her lush body and her beauty, noting the water dripping between her full breasts.

She turned and looked at him and smiled
Soldier, come here

He shifted the weight of his Galil on the sling, in case this was a set-up, but still went willingly. It was obvious that he was a soldier even if he was wearing American desert cammies instead of IDF issue. His hair was cut in a high-and-tight, and the tattoos up and down his arms were a skull-and-bones for each combat kill The rabbis might frown at a violation of the Mosaic Code, but he didn't care about rabbis for the most part.

As he approached, she walked calmly to her clothes and began dressing. She didn't hurry in embarrassment, but she didn't do a bump and grind either. She did show the goodies when she bent over to pick up her clothes, and for that he smiled at her.

She beckoned to a plate of food
You should stop what you're doing and stay with me. The water is always the right feel, food is ready at hand, and the nights will never be cold

Now that was tempting, but there was a job to do, up in the hills beyond the oasis. The family next door had taken in a rabbi who had gone mad and claimed he was a actually a Temple priest. He ranted about the destruction of Israel if the politicians continued to make peace with the religious savages of Mohammed; that made some sense in a political way, if not in a God's wrath fashion. But the rabbi also spoke about the Guf, the Well of Souls. He supposedly knew where it was at.

That was a different story. He didn't think for a second that God had left such a place on earth. The days of miracles were over, left in the past with Moses and David. On the other hand, it was possible there was a monetary or archeological treasure to be had. Quite frankly, he saw that Israel didn't have the will to defend itself against the Muslim world in an effective way. A nice historical find would enable him to take his family and flee to the relative safety of America

He told the woman he'd be back when he could, but that he had to move now. She just shrugged
Your choice is your own, soldier

Past the oasis, the directions the crazed rabbi had given him started making sense again.

He found the cliff face exactly as expected. He threw the folding grapnel at the two rocks at the corner of the top, where the rabbi had told him there was a "catch" built in.. The hook caught well on his second throw. He climbed as quietly as he could, keeping an eye out for anyone that may be at the top. As he neared the top of the rope, he readied the Galil. He swept the top of the cliff as he created it, but there was no one there.

Once upon his feet, he saw the cave opening, set back and protected from the elements by an overhang. Inside, he found a stairway that looked as it had been made of concrete. He moved down the stairs, prepared for any guards. There had to be some people here, for there was a bright glow from down below...as bright as if there was electrical lights down there

Despite his urgency to see what lie beneath, he slowly went down the stairs, the rifle covering the passage down. He crept down to the last corner before the bottom. As he turned the corner, he let the rifle fall from his hands
ohh, fuck ME

And what is The Guf?

Follow Me!

My Books