Pandora's Ark Read Free

by Ra. This Shishak
was sure of.
    As the Egyptian king led his league of soldiers
toward the Temple, the color of the morning sky was no longer red, but blue,
with towering pillars of black smoke reaching skyward toward the emerging
new-day sun. Jerusalem was burning. 
    The Temple Mount was exquisite, even by Shishak’s
standards who ultimately respected Egyptian architecture. The Temple itself was
a massive complex of stone arches and monumental columns. The towering walkways
and wide staircases that took worshippers to grand hallways that seemed endless
mesmerized Shishak to the point where he felt somewhat remorseful in defeating
a city so rich in the complexity of its structure and beauty. At one point he
even considered imbibing this architectural culture into his. But then he
quickly dismissed the notion, sensing that this culture would only tend to
belittle Egyptian sophistication.    
    Once at the Holy Temple, Shishak remained upon his
horse for a long moment before getting off his steed, placed his hands against
the door as if to learn the secrets within through osmosis, then gestured for
his troops to knock it down.
    It took nearly an hour, but the door was destroyed,
the wood lying in splintered pieces, the opening giving way to a dark
passageway that led to the depths beneath the Temple Mount.
    With his torch ablaze, Darius moved toward the
darkness with his light piercing little of the descending stairway. “The
Chamber lies deep,” he told Shishak. “We’ll need many to carry the treasures,
especially the Ark.”
    “The Ark is first and foremost,” he said. “Make
sure great caution is taken.”
    “Aye.”
    They descended slowly with several torches lighting
the way, the stairs well maintained. Once at the bottom they noticed the
dust-laden floor, which seemed odd when the rest of the complex was immaculate,
especially for a place of great worship. As they entered the Chamber they were
awed by the vastness of wealth, which was far more considerable than they
originally thought. Lined against the walls were the Shields of Solomon, a
pillager’s dream. And throughout lay conical-shaped mounds of gold coins as
well as gems of every size, of every color and shape. Yet they did not appear
opulent or bright. The color of gold was instead muted, the shine hindered by
heavy dust that continued to eddy in the air. 
    Shishak moved to the center of the room. The space
was empty. “Where is the Ark, Darius? You said it would be in the room’s
center.”
    Darius made his way beside him. “They moved it,” he
said. ”There isn’t an open spot within this whole Chamber, except for this
area.”
    “If that was so,” said Shishak, “then there would
be evidence that something was recently moved, yet the floor remains heavy with
dust without a hint that something was ever here at all.” Shishak took a few steps
to his left and lifted a golden pot of manna. The ground beneath it was clear
of dust, the evidence that the pot was there while dust gathered around its
base prominent, his point made. He tossed the pot aside. “It was never here,”
he finally said. “Grab everything and make ready for transport. These treasures
should be residing in a temple of a true god.”
    “Aye.”
    “And, Darius?”
    “Aye.”
    “If one soldier steals a single coin, I want you to
execute him on the spot and make an example of him to the others. And
especially watch the Sukkites. Mercenaries seem to have a weakness for profit
that is not their own.” 
    “Aye.”
    As the treasures were being gathered, Shishak
wondered what happened to the Ark, never realizing that it was less than one
hundred meters from where he stood.
     

 
     
     
    CHAPTER ONE
    Near the Temple Mount, Jerusalem, Present Day
     
    Adham al-Ghazi had been searching for the Ark of the
Covenant for several years, reading every written piece of work regarding its
whereabouts and exploring the true possibility of its existence. He had gone to
the