Esau and Jacob were among those given nets. “Tonight we will be full!� Esau laughed for the first time in weeks, and Jacob joined in his mirth as they pulled in a net full of fish, followed by several more.
Another group of slaves started fires on the beach with the wood scavenged by yet others, and the fish netted and cooked on a massive scale. This night no one went hungry. Esau and the slaves from his ship formed a tight group, as did the slaves from other vessels. For the first time in weeks, their hunger was sated and they rested on the warm sand watching as the soldiers began returning to their dinners. One group returned carrying an injured man, bitten by a serpent of some type. Though the serpent was not like the ones from Egypt, they were as deadly, and by morning, the man had sickened and died. After only a brief work period of securing the ships well up into the mouth of the river they had landed near, Esau was surprised the Slave Masters allowed them the remainder of the day to rest. On the morning of the third day, the slaves’ rest was over and their Masters’ herded them on a forced march along the edge of the river. Forced to hack and slash a path through the dense growth of foliage, the company followed the river inland along the banks. They crossed small streams of the tea colored water with white sandy bottoms. At some places, the water boiled up from the white sand, crystal-clear, cold, and sweet to the taste.
Now the Priests seemed to know where they were going; Esau observed their confidence seemed to have increased. Perhaps, he thought, their animal-headed gods had told them where to find the location they looked for in this beautiful, hostile, and strange land.
Esau saw animals that reminded him of the crocodiles in Egypt, smaller, but just as deadly, and they found more of the poisonous serpents in different varieties, losing more men to them, some Slaves, some Soldiers, and two Priests. By the afternoon of the second day, Esau noticed the land had changed and on the end of the third day, the Priests seemed to have found what they had been looking for.
Esau and his group of slaves stood on the gradually sloping shores with the others and overlooked a massive crystal-clear, fresh water lake, with sweet tasting water. Tall, sharp-edged grass grew in thick water-fields in the shallows along with cattails, like those found along the shores of the Nile, and lined most of the sandy bank reminding them of home. For once, the Guards relented and allowed the slaves to swim in the water for a time. Until again they were organized into work parties to man the nets, gather food and firewood, while others were set to erecting tents. Esau had observed that these were more permanent structures, and he knew this was the location he and the other slaves would work out the rest of their young lives.
Esau had been a master builder in Egypt, that ability and his age had been the reason for his selection for this voyage. Now he surveyed the area with a worried frown on his tanned face.
“Jacob,� he said to his fellow slave and friend, “this is a near impossible task.�
“Esau, there is no straw to make bricks or stones to build with, what will we use?� Jacob asked.
“That is what I mean, Jacob, we have no materials to build with.� Esau explained.
Regardless, the next day their toil began. Without the materials found in Egypt to build the Pyramid, straw and the rich mud of the Nile, Esau and the others would build this Pyramid out of the Saw Grass that sliced their hands and the less suitable sandy mud of the lake. Builders like Esau knew this Pyramid would not last like those in Egypt but they did not know that the lake would cover the Pyramid in silt and soil and preserve it.
Esau became one of hundreds of muscled bodies that glistened with sweat produced from hours of toil in the thigh deep muck. Under this constant strain, his young face showed the heavy lines of a much older man. His skin-tanned bronze by the harshness of the southern sun, his back bent and scarred under the brutal blows of the Slave Masters’ whips. Esau knew the Priests were frantic to complete this Pyramid. From his low position, he watched the Priests drive the Slave Masters to increase the Slaves’ pace.
Constructed as an entrance to a sacred underworld entrance—not the final resting place of a Pharaoh—the Slave Masters believed what the Priests had told them. Esau and the other Slaves listened with deaf ears and prayed with silent lips for their lives.
Esau saw five years pass as they labored to complete the small Pyramid through oppressive heat in the summers and cold that numbed to the bone in the winters. He and the other Slaves weathered storms through the long summer months that came upon them with such suddenness it caught them unprepared. Even the Priests could not foretell when one of these tremendous storms would come - storms that blew with winds of such force a man could not stand up in them. Esau had watched Jacob drown in one such storm as he struggled helplessly to save him. Jacob had been blown into the lake during such a storm when waves reached heights taller than two men standing on each other’s shoulders did.
Strange diseases plagued them. Esau almost succumbed to one of the diseases the Priests had never encountered and could not cure. It did take the lives of over a hundred of the Slaves, thirty of the Soldiers, and several of the Priests.
The once alien land was now familiar and Esau found it not unlike Egypt. He saw too that their work was nearly completed. Esau watched the huddled meetings and whisperings of the Priests and feared for their lives. Perhaps the Priests would leave them behind but Esau suspected the Priest would not allow them to live.
Apuat, assigned High Priest over this endeavor by the High Priest in Egypt still labored, assisted by the other priests and artisans in the yet unfinished rooms inside the Pyramid. Slaves, not allowed inside these Holy rooms, had been assigned the menial jobs to be completed on the grounds around the structure. Daily the Priests anticipated the arrival of a special contingent of “Beings� to sanctify the Pyramid and the work had to be completed by their arrival.
Apuat was inside the Pyramid praying in solitude when he heard excited shouts. Finally the day had come! With great anticipation, the Soldiers called the Priests and alerted them to the arrival of the “Beings� they had awaited. Apuat walked outside into the bright sunlight with more calm decorum than the other Priests that ran ahead. He shaded his eyes with his hand and squinted his heavily kohl lined eyes in amazement at the metallic ship in the sky. Cylindrical in shape, it moved over the lake toward their location. It reduced its speed and descended as it neared them. Apuat had not known what to expect from these “Beings� but he had not expected them to arrive in this manner. Surely only gods could fly through the air. Silence fell over the entire project as the ship settled to the ground with a great gust of heated air that boiled from beneath the craft, accompanied by the roar of an enraged Lion. In fear, all but the Priests moved back and away from the roar and metallic beast.
With the weight of his position on him, Apuat took the first tenuous steps toward the ship as the door slid open and in a tremulous but loud voice, invoked blessings on the vessel and the people who started to emerge from the door. Their leader stopped before Apuat and quietly spoke to him. Apuat’s face fell and he bowed his head, the “Beingâ€� was clearly displeased and walked away. He signaled the twenty other Priests in the group to follow him toward the Pyramid.
Esau watched among the remaining group of Slaves and the Soldiers made sure they stayed well away from the “Beings.� It was obvious by the “Beings� attitude body stance and harsh words they were not pleased with the Priests for some reason. Esau observed with closer interest what went on between the newcomers and the Priests. By the Priests actions, he could see that they were anxious. These strange people surveyed the Pyramid, the Egyptian Priests, the Soldiers, and the Slaves.
Esau met their eyes calmly and did not look away. This seemed to please the “Beings”. He wondered at their appearance, never had he seen people dressed in clothes that appeared sewn from gold and silver. Others came from the metallic chariot preceded by strange objects
that floated on the air and made from a metal he had never seen before. Esau watched, interested, as all these people entered the Pyramid. Time passed and sounds unlike he had ever heard before emanated from inside the structure. Metallic men came from inside the Pyramid. Esau had to suppress his amusement at the Priests as they bowed low before these bizarre, stiff jointed men with glowing green eyes who ignored them. The metal men returned to the flying ship and came back with more of the mysterious floating objects the finely dressed people had taken inside the Pyramid. Day turned to night and day came again. Esau and the entire company kept their vigilant watch. Finally, the men and women from the flying ship returned, followed by the stiff jointed metallic men and they no longer had the objects with them.
Standing together as a group of thirty, the leader of the “Beings� turned to the Egyptian Priest Apuat and spoke commandingly to him. “You are to return to Egypt with all of your people, including the forced workers.� He said this in a loud voice, clearly unhappy, “You were told not to build this Pyramid with Slaves and you have disobeyed. You are to return these men to their families and give them their freedom for their work as well as fair wages for the years you have stolen from them. Further, to the families of the ones lost in this endeavor you will compensate them. However, it is not truly possible to compensate for the loss of one human life. This is our command!�
“By your Command!� Apuat replied and bowed, respect in his voice.
Esau was as astonished as were the other Slaves. They looked at one another in disbelief as the strange people went into their air ships and ascended back into the sky. Yet the Slaves watched the Priests while they huddled together in quiet conversation. Over the years, Esau and the other Slaves had learned not to trust the Priests or the Soldiers under their command.
Soldiers and Slaves alike dismantled the tents the next morning as the sun rose, while the Priest performed their dutiful dawn devotions to Ra. Esau and the other Slaves suspiciously watched the Soldiers, expecting them to massacre them despite the words of the “Beings” commands. Esau had watched the provisions and stores gathered for their return voyage and knew they were slim. A group of Slaves, sent ahead to the Ocean to prepare dried fish, could not provide enough food for the long journey home. Contrary to Apuat’s oath to the “Beings,â€� he did not believe the Egyptians’ promise to take them back. By now, the trail back to the Blue Ocean was well established and after a two-day trek and a night spent on the beach, Esau and the other Slaves boarded the reed ships they had used for the original voyage.
Now five years older, the boats were in good repair, but by the end of the first day Esau and the other Slaves knew how the Priests would dispose of them. They had been crowded onto the least worthy vessels and as darkness drew near the Soldiers saw to it that their boats floundered as the Priests and Soldiers sailed away on the six best seaworthy crafts.
Esau and the Slaves that could swim vainly tried to help the others who could not. As the stars came out and the full moon rose high in the night sky, Esau tried to keep them together. They clung to the parts of the disintegrated vessels that floated in hopes the tides would carry them to the shore when the tides changed. Still in sight of some of the smaller islands, Esau called out to the others that they might be able to swim to those small mounds of land and encouraged his people to stay together.
Lights appeared in the darkness over their heads and beneath them. At first terrified, the Slaves soon realized the lights were drawing closer, adding to their trepidations. The same people who had appeared at the Pyramid and instructed the Priests to see them home to their families would now save them from a watery death. The Slaves, who did not worship these “Beingsâ€� as gods, were grateful for their rescue. Esau found when he thanked the people who had saved them, they weren’t “godsâ€� but humans, and treated the Slaves with respect and kindness, the first they had been shown in many years.
High Priest Apuat, seeing the lights around where they had left the Slaves to drown, became curious; the Sailors and Soldiers became frightened and observed in amazement as those same lights drew closer to them.
A voice they all recognized as the leader of the “Beings� from the sky came out of those lights. “You again have disobeyed our instructions.� The voice was angry. “Only one of your vessels will return to Egypt to relay this warning. For your disobedience, the rest of you will find the same fate that you designed on your fellow man.�
High Priest Apuat was trembling as five of their boats sank; leaving only the vessel he stood on afloat. As the voice had judged, only his boat returned to Egypt, leaving High Priest Apuat to relate to his Pharaoh the story of the Construction of the Western Entrance to the Underwater City of the now submerged Continent of Atlantis. Before Pharaoh, and on his knees, Apuat told the story of the construction of the Pyramid, and of their punishment for disobeying the Lords of Atlantis.
Abandoned because of the severity of their punishment, the western entrance fell into ruin. Pharaoh ordered all records of its existence destroyed and no other expeditions undertaken to the distant land across the Blue Ocean. As geological times and Nature changes all things, the entrance became lost under the water of the lake, grown over by the saw grass and cattails and forgotten, until the drought exposed it centuries later.
Esau and his surviving fellow slaves were never to return to their native land, but found homes and happy lives in Atlantis. Centuries later, some of their descendents migrated to the United States during the period just after the Civil War. Many settled in Florida and held the secret of the location of Atlantis sacred in their hearts, most taking that secret to their graves.
Chapter One
Haunted! No other word described the return of the ethereal dream after a five-year absence, which plagued Jessica. It had become a nightmare really, because of the inexplicable frequency in which she nightly relived the terrors of a dive accident that occurred so long ago. Upon waking, she remembered little of the illusive apparition, only enough of the lurid memory to know what it was she had dreamt, contrasted with the unusual eyes, and gentle arousing touch of her rescuer. Those eyes were always with Jessica. For five years, they had never left her, that and the poignant feel of his caressing hands – a touch no other man had equaled.
Jessica dismounted her bicycle, and drained one of her water bottles while she looked out over the severely drought-lowered Lake Okeechobee. She hoped a long strenuous ride would exorcise the demon, but she knew it hadn’t. Those memorizing eyes still stared back at her when she closed her eyes.
“Maybe stress from finishing my Archaeology thesis triggered the dream’s return.â€� Jessica mumbled to herself, unmindful of the other people who rode by on the Scenic trail of Lake Okeechobee’s retention dyke in South Florida. She moved her bike off the trail, balanced it against a bench, and wondered if she would ever see the face of her rescuer, or only awake to remember his eyes, and his arousing touch. Would he forever shadow her heart? She knew no one else would ever move her as that young man had.
Jessica stretched, and allowed her supple young muscles to relax. A good hard workout sometimes helped to chase the remnants of the dream away, along with the toxins in her system. To cool off, she removed her helmet, and scanned over the dry marsh grass of the drought-affected lake, saddened by the lack of water. She had always loved this view, but preferred the usually greener landscape. Abstractly, she withdrew a nutrition bar from her bike bag for a snack.
Her scrutiny returned to the lake, and came to rest on a large lump of mud jutting upward from the bottom muck of the lakebed, through the dead brown cattails, and dry saw grass. Jessica’s attention became fixated on the lump of mud, and the imperfect geometric shape it formed. Clearly, that lump had a definite shape, the shape of a Pyramid. She took another long drink of water, and continued to study what it appeared she might have found. A Pyramid! Fascinated, Jessica failed to notice the ot
her riders that passed. She was oblivious to the men who admired her shapely figure in the padded tight pants, and colorful jersey of a dedicated bicycle rider.
Staring at the shape, she finished her snack and washed it down with more water. Ghost memories of the reoccurring dream floated through her mind, seemingly triggered by the shape. Intrigued, Jessica wondered why that dream would come back so strong while she stared at this inscrutable lump of oddly shaped mud, and found aquamarine eyes firmly staring back at her from deep inside her mind. Exiling those eyes from her conscience mind, they take enough of my sleep time; Jessica thought and straightened her sock over her ankle bracelet, which had inexplicably ended the dream when the event had originally occurred.
She had found the ankle bracelet on the dive of the wreck of the Mitzpah that traumatic day. The white gold, yellow gold alternating dolphin ankle bracelet had become a type of talisman against the dream, but it wasn’t working well lately. It intrigued Jessica that neither she nor her family had any clear memory of the event. After the dreams, she awoke with haunting visions of aquamarine eyes that gazed deeply into her own. Her only reminder of that particular day, other than his eyes, was despite the heat of summer in South Florida that day; chills had raced through her from his touch. She pushed the memory aside, and returned her thoughts to the mysterious lump protruding from the lakebed.
“Only way.â€� she spoke quietly to herself, and then looked around to be sure no one was listening. It was a quirk of some archaeologists to talk to themselves, sometimes from working alone for long periods alone. “To be sure that lump of mudâ€� she laughed to herself, “is or isn’t a Pyramid, is to rent an airboat and check it out. Oh hell, it’s probably someone’s pile of oyster shells.â€�
She mounted her bike and with a last look at the mound of oddly shaped mud and started peddling toward the marina at Buckhead Ridge, where she could rent an airboat, near where she had parked her jeep. Her mind, working on overdrive, as she thought about the possibilities of what she instinctively knew she had found.
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