by Summer Lee
SAM WOKE UP CHILLED. He was just glad that he woke up alive. He smiled, as he stretched, and then he opened his eyes. The smile went away, as he brought his arms down from the stretch. He remembered where he was.
For a second, he thought it was all a bad dream. He should have known better, considering that his dreams were never as strange as the life he actually lived.
He looked around. No sign of Achava. Maybe she was getting more twigs to fuel the fire that was almost burned out. He walked around and called her name. No Achava. Checking the area closely, he could see no signs of her. She was gone.
Returning to the campsite, he looked down at the soft earth around his feet, checking for Achava’s footprints. He saw some of her small impressions in the soil, and followed them for a while, but then there was evidence of a struggle. After that, only large footprints were apparent. He put the fire out with dirt. Strapping on his backpack, he walked away. The sun was bright, and from what he could tell, had just risen. Strange!
He could see the thick trees nearby and the tall thin trees in the distance. They stood tall across a pastureland. There was nothing moving in that direction. He assumed that Achava wouldn’t have gone back for anything, so that meant she had gone forward or else was taken someplace against her will.
There was a hill on his left. The giant footprints went that way. He had to go toward the hills to search for her. Plus, he wanted to see what was on the other side of the nearby hill anyhow. Going up, it would be easier than going around the hill—for certain. So up he went.
Sam’s heart beat hard, and he felt heavy hearted and lightheaded. He sighed. “Oh Achava, my love. Please be alive.”
He pressed ahead, following the giant footprints, ascending toward the top. Considering his respiratory illness, it was a relatively effortless climb. The number of foot impressions showed that more of the giants had gathered close to the top.
Sam made it to the top fairly quickly, without breathing very hard. What he saw on the other side, looking down toward the base of the rocky hill, shocked him. He could see makeshift tents, made out of what appeared to be animal skins stretched out with thick sticks for the support. The tents were held down with large rocks. He could see several large figures in a circle on the ground. They surrounded a lone thinner figure—Achava.
Without thinking of himself, Sam practically ran down the hill, heading straight for the gathering. As he got closer, there were humungous idols at both ends of the village. Some people knelt, worshiping the false gods. Others were dancing in front of the idol. Those who were performing a religious ritual appeared to be naked and sensual. They were not honoring God.
He noticed that there were entire families, living in that area. Beyond the humanistic worshipers there was a huge camp fire in the middle of the tent city. Many oversized people were gathered around it keeping warm, visiting and eating.
Having heard of Nephilim, he guessed that was what he saw. He assumed that they were similar to nomads. It was hard to constantly process the people from that timeline. Sam counted at least twenty tents and double that number with people. Those he could see, anyway.
Since the flood was coming to destroy evil giants in history, Sam knew for sure why they had gone back before Noah’s time. The giants were godless.
Sam stubbed his toe. Hitting a loose rock, he slid downward, making a great commotion. When he came to a stop, he had reached a well-populated area, getting everyone’s attention, including Achava. She shook her head, grinning.
Getting his bearings, he walked slowly toward Achava. When he got down to ground level where she stood, he noticed the women were hiding their children from the strange intruders. There was fear and confusion all over their faces. That he understood.
As he slowly glanced at each mother, he looked deeply into their eyes. He saw that each one was definitely inquisitive about Achava. Others just looked at him in awe. The curiosity among them brought out the social scientist in him. He wished he could interview them. The archeology part of his brain was extremely excited. The nerd in him was scared senseless.
From where he stood, he could see Achava was not harmed. She held her hands away from her body in a non-threatening manner—her palms turned upward. She kept her head down slightly, so as not to provoke them. Nor did she challenge them by making eye contact. The nomads stood watching her, ready to pounce if she caused trouble.
Sam moved slowly until he stood by Achava.
Sam followed suit. Holding his hands in front of him, palms up, he showed he had no weapons. Bowing low, he stepped forward, slowly moving toward Achava, He finally was allowed to stand next to her.
Then Sam made the biggest mistake since he had known Achava. He spoke in a language the giants did not know. “Are you alright, Achava?” Sam asked.
She shook her head, as her eyes widened.
He looked around at the nomads. Each one that heard him had a look of horror on his face.
He didn’t quite understand, until Achava leaned in close and whispered in his ear. “We are in a time that precedes the Tower of Babel by at least 400 years. Everyone in this time is supposed to speak the same language. They don’t know what your sounds mean.”
Sam moved his mouth close to her ear. “I am more than sorry, obviously. One question. God is going to destroy everyone on the planet in the flood, because they’re unrighteous. Right? Then why are these people going to die? They seem pleasant enough.”
“They can get on the ark if they want to. They just don’t want to. Ours is not to decide what is righteous,” she answered. “Just because they do not show us evil, doesn’t mean that they do not have evil in their hearts. That is between God and each one of them individually. His will be done.” She paused and added. “They do worship other gods.”
He looked across the way at the ones bowing before idols. “That is not good.”
One of the nomad women walked up to Sam and looked at his pack. She smiled and grabbed it, trying to wrestle it off of his back. He instinctively stepped back and twisted from side to side, to release her grip.
She jumped back with a shocked look on her face. Then, the man she was standing next to approached Sam. His look was that of rage.
Achava stepped in between Sam and the larger man. The angry nomad yelled something in his own tongue. Slobber flew from his mouth into her face. Achava ducked, as she tried her best to avoid the wet barrage.
The man wanted Sam’s backpack for his woman, but the communication barrier made Sam’s actions look more threatening than anything else.
Achava had no choice, but to push the large man backward. He then looked surprised, as she pointed to him and then to herself. It signified that she would fight him for the pack.
There was a realization of what she was stating, by the look in his eyes. The nomad smiled for the first time. His teeth were black and brown. Some of them missing. Sam thought those were the lucky ones, as he realized the nomad’s dental capabilities were close to non-existent.
Sam watched Achava as she grimaced. The nomad looked and pointed at Sam and nodded. Achava turned to Sam. “Sam! He wants to fight you for your pack. Not me.”
“What?” Sam exclaimed. “I can’t let him have my pack! That’s got our future stuff in it!”
Achava rolled her eyes in frustration. “Sam, I need you to remain calm, no matter what happens. You have to fight him. It’s a matter of honor. You can beat him. Don’t you know Jeet Kune Do?”
“I do.” Sam nodded, as he looked at the size of the man in front of him. “All he has to do is grab me once and it’s all over.”
Achava looked at Sam and smiled. Her eyes glowed a bit more golden. “Then don’t let him grab you.”
Sam faked a smile, as he handed her the invaluable pack. He closed his eyes temporarily, to remember everything he learned in his martial arts classes. The only real test was when he fought the Sentinels of the Lord in his home. He beat one of them, anyway.
As he was opening his eyes, Achava cried out his nam
e. “Sam!” It was more of a warning than anything else. Once he opened his eyes, he noticed a huge fist coming straight for his face. He had no time to react, as the feel of what appeared to be a brick hit him square on the nose.
Everything seemed to go in slow motion after that, as his vision blurred and he hit the ground. His head was spinning as he could see Achava wanting to intervene, but stopping herself. That’s the last thing Sam wanted. He noticed that she had both of her hands covering her mouth. Her eyes pleaded with him to get up.
Meanwhile, the brute who hit him was celebrating with his friends and family, dancing in a circle. Sam realized one important fact—testosterone had been around for quite some time.
He slowly pulled himself up to his feet. He felt the warm blood running down his face and dripping onto his clothing. His nose was definitely broken.
He tried to shake off the freebie he gave the nomad and took in a deep breath. Through his mouth.
He rolled his head around over his shoulders to loosen up his neck and then looked at his adversary. It reminded him of the story of David and Goliath. How Biblical.
His name wouldn’t be recorded in Biblical history, unless he did something incredibly stupid. He knew he had to beat the nomad and he had to beat him fast.
Sam’s opponent looked shocked at his recovery time. Someone of Sam’s stature should have been put away with one punch. There may have even been a look of respect in the eyes of the bigger man. Grinning, the giant advanced toward Sam.
Since Sam had a chance to study the brute’s movements, it was simple to predict where the next attack would come from. Sam’s Goliath didn’t have the advantage of taking modern day martial arts. He probably didn’t even know what martial arts were. Sam was happy to show him.
The nomad pulled back with his right arm and Sam smiled. As soon as the huge fist came toward him, Sam sidestepped out of the way with ease. Then the left fist of the giant came toward him. Sam ducked under it and immediately placed one hand on the ground, as he slammed his foot into the nomad’s kneecap.
The bigger man looked confused, but showed no sign of being in pain. Sam quickly learned that the knees were out of the equation. He knew he had to get the man on the ground another way. Once he did, the battle was his.
The nomad was getting frustrated as he attacked with surprising speed. His combination, one-two punching would have devastated Sam if they connected. He had to make sure that the first punch the giant made would be the last time he was actually hit.
The nomad’s frustration made him act clumsy, but still a viable threat. Sam dodged or ducked each punch with fluidity. It was as if the larger man was trying to punch water.
Sam was in his zone as he glanced at Achava. She was extremely impressed. Her eyes brilliantly glowed. He smiled and then directed his concentration back to his opponent.
The nomad then tried the double fist, which only made him more off balance, once he followed through. As the giant stumbled, Sam hit him with several straight lead punches. The hits were designed to attack more with speed than strength, which they did for Sam.
Unfortunately for Sam, the giant had tougher skin than anyone he had ever encountered before. It must have been his rough life outdoors with no modern conveniences.
There were growls emitting from Sam’s foe, as Sam continued his barrage of small punches. He knew he was moving faster than any of the locals had ever seen anyone move before. Still, it seemed not enough, as each punch Sam delivered didn’t have the needed strength to bring his opponent down.
Soon, Sam was getting frustrated as well.
It was a constant punch-and-dodge comedy of errors. Sam had to end it as soon as possible, but his frustration was making him careless. He dodged one punch and ended up right in the giant’s grip from his free hand. The nomad brought Sam into a bear hug and started to squeeze.
As Sam fell into the grip, pain raced through his head. He was unable to move his fingers. The pain was unbelievable. He was stuck.
Sam knew he was in trouble. In another moment, he wouldn’t be able to breathe, and he felt fear in his gut. The bad thing wasn’t that the nomad would have the backpack, so much as Sam actually being dead. All Achava could do would be to avenge him. It could get messy after that.
Sam had something to prove to Achava and that chance was handed to him on a silver platter. All he had to do was snatch victory from the shadow of defeat. It was about more than just protecting the pack, or even saving his own life. It was about showing that he was not only a valuable member of the team because of his intellect, but for his ability to defend himself as well.
That may have been the only chance he would have to prove his physical strength to the woman he loved. He couldn’t just do it for Achava. He had to do it for himself as well. Nothing speaks confidence like beating an opponent twice your size. He felt an uppercut to his chin and fell. He rolled on the ground, groaning, and then felt rage as he got back up.
His nose was swelling more, so he kept breathing through his mouth. He sighed, because he knew this was going to be his only move of self-defense. His arms were pinned down in the bear hug and his legs were not in position. He could not use them to do any damage to the Nephilim. He needed leg strength to drop his foe, so he pulled them under him to get ready to stand.
He moved his head back, as far as it would go, which caused it to become harder to breathe. Smelling the giant’s rancid breath made his own breathing that much harder.
He brought his head forward as fast and hard as he could. He made sure to focus the point of contact from his forehead to the nomad’s nose. He acted mostly out of desperation, but that’s usually when the best plans are conceived.
As he connected, he felt the sharpest pain in his head that he had ever felt in his life. His eyes closed automatically. He just wanted to massage his aching temples. He reached up and rubbed his head. Hey, I reached up, he thought. Sam realized that he was free of the bear hug.
He opened his eyes and saw the giant stagger. He was filled with new vigor, as he ran up to his foe with both of his hands open. He then slammed his hands onto the larger man’s ears with all of his strength. He did it so hard, that the giant grunted loud enough for people on the other side of the mountain to hear him.
Disoriented, the giant staggered, but did not fall. Sam knew he could not let up now. Somewhere within himself, he had accessed some primal being—a being that needed to win at all cost.
Sam quickly gathered his strength for what would be perhaps his last stand. He ran defiantly up to his foe and clapped his hands on his ears again. He felt more power behind him that time. He heard a crunch. Sam could feel the bones in his own hands vibrate against the hardened skin of the nomad. Pain raced up his arms. He thought that he might have broken both wrists, but he realized that despite the pain, he could still move his hands.
With trembling hands, he saw the giant’s eyes glaze over. Sam took in a deep breath, knowing that he had to do it… one… more… time.
The giant fell to his knees as Sam approached him for the final attack. At that point, he did not know if Achava was even still there or not.
That was no longer important.
Maybe it was the timeline they were in, or maybe it was a collection of everything else that had been going on, but for the first time in his life, Sam felt invincible.
With a huge grunt, Sam walked up and slammed his opponent’s ears, one more time. The man let out a primal scream instantly, falling backward.
Achava approached him, with tears in her eyes. “Sam! Look!” She tried to gently guide his head in the direction of his fallen foe. The giant was down. He was unconscious.
“He isn’t…?” Sam asked, with great concern.
“He lives, Sam,” Achava placed her hand gently on his cheek. “You won!”
He couldn’t believe it. Sam won a fight that meant more to him, than it did to anyone else. He won. With all of the praise Achava showered him with, he only had one thing on his mind.
“Can you please get the first aid kit out of the backpack for me?”
Chapter the Fifth
ACHAVA COULDN’T HAVE BEEN MORE PROUD OF SAM. She never really doubted him, but to see him like that made her cry for joy.
The chief Nephilim directed them out of town. It did not seem right, but she went that way anyhow.
She waited until they cleared the nomad camp before she dressed his wounds. Thankfully, there was enough gauze in the first aid kit, to wrap around Sam’s wrists and keep them safe. He could barely move his hands, so Achava made sure to keep the backpack with her and carry it herself. She hooked it on both shoulders to keep her hands free. She needed to let him heal.
She dressed his broken nose as well. She had to be careful, because of how sensitive he was to pain. She knew he would have a bruise for a while, but she could not help but smile. He won the battle against a bigger and tougher opponent, and she was proud.
Just like David.
“Were those the same guys that we saw when we first arrived?” asked Sam.
“Yes.” She looked him in the eyes. “It is good that I got up early and met them on the trail. Otherwise, who knows what they would have done to us.”
Achava picked up a thick, strong stick and cleaned it off to make a cane. She handed it to Sam. “This should help.”
As they walked together toward who knew where, she noticed Sam had a smile on his face that didn’t fade.
She looked ahead of them and realized that they were more lost than they ever had been before. She didn’t want to let Sam know that she was scared. He needed to think that even though they were in a strange land and strange time, she had things under control.
Achava was actually the one who needed reassuring, and she got it when Sam beat the giant. She felt a little bit more comfortable with their situation now. If he would have lost, she would have emotionally folded. Now at least, there was a chance to find the ark again. Thanks to Sam.
The subject of finding Anthea and Khassima hadn’t been mentioned much at all since they arrived. That was something Achava did not want to think about right now.