"This heat is unbearable."
"I thought you were from Florida? Shouldn't you be able to handle a little heat?"
"At least in Florida there're trees! At least in Florida there's an ocean to swim in! At least in Florida, there are beautiful, bikini-clad ladies looking to get a tan! Here in the middle of the desert, there's no shade, no water, and none of the woman even show ankle! I'll take Florida heat to this any day."
It was times like these that made Shane Thomas think twice about his chosen profession. He had always been interested in history and growing up in Tampa in a very conservative Christian family made him very acquainted in Biblical history. And while he became less interested in his family's faith, Middle Eastern archeology became a perfect career fit for him. But as his time went on in college, he realized that most of the good places to dig had already been dug or were forbidden from exploration due to religious reasons. So to spice things up, he decided to study abroad in England, in a program that guaranteed dig time in yet-untouched places.
And that's where he met Shannon, a beautiful Irish lass also in his program and participating in this season's dig. Her red, curly hair and freckles lent themselves to endless daydreams for Shane; who was also quite stricken by Shannon's light Irish brogue, which had clearly been watered down by years of living in Britain. "It's still cute though," he thought to himself.
He had never made a move on Shannon, and there were good reasons he supposed. She was probably his best friend on this dig, he couldn't jeopardize that. The dig was taking place in a remote part of northeastern Israel. If he had tried to make his move and was rebuffed, there would be plenty of time for awkward moments, although the Syrian Golan Heights artillery only 10 miles away always provided an easy out... But the dig season was in its last week, and he had figured that now was his only chance, because once they got back to civilization, he'd have to hack his way through her admirers like a machete through jungle vines.
Shane wasn't anything ugly by any means, just average - average in every way. Five foot nine, brown hair, brown eyes, not heavy but not athletic- he really was just plain, and he knew it.
"Shane, come over here! I think I found something!" yelled Shannon.
Shane ran over and knelt down into the hole that Shannon had been working in. As she slowly brushed away the sand and dirt, one could slowly make out what looked like a necklace.
"It's beautiful!" Shane exclaimed as the red and green inlaid gems started to glimmer in the setting sunlight.
"It's a talisman; Shane, start digging around here to see if you can find anything with it!" cried Shannon.
Shane eagerly retrieved his trowel, came back to Shannon's worksite, and hurriedly began to search for other items that may have once fallen near the talisman. Once she had freed the necklace from the ground, Shannon left the site to show the dig leader what she had found. Shortly thereafter, Shane began to unearth what looked like a statue. He had seen many like them around, but this one possessed a disproportionately large phallus at his waist and had horns extending from the side of his head. Standing six, maybe eight inches tall, the horns clearly identified it as a statue of Ba'al, the ancient Semitic head god and lord of the sky and rain. Once completely unearthed, Shane brought it over to Shannon and the dig leader to present what he found.
"Professor, I'm sorry to interrupt, but I found this statue very close to where we found the talisman. I think this may have significance in regard to it," explained Shane.
"I agree," the professor replied. "Place the two items in the artifact tent and then get washed up. We all leave camp tomorrow morning; so we can further examine these items when we get back home."
Shane and Shannon did as the professor asker, but Shane couldn't wait. For whatever reason, he felt drawn to examine this statue further.
Following dinner and after everyone had turned in for the night, Shane sneaked back into the artifact tent with a flashlight and picked up the statue. The moment he touched it though, the world around seemed to stop in time, when a voice suddenly broke the unnatural silence.
"You have found me."
"I'm sorry; who are you, and what do you mean I found you?" replied Shane.
"My name is Asherah, and I have been trapped in this statue, that is until you have given me voice. I am the mother god, the consort to Ba'al, and the creator of life."
"What do you want from me?" Shane asked. Shane was very well-versed in the Asherah and Ba'al myths of the Bible, but he had always assumed them to be just that, myth.
"You have allowed me to speak, yet I am still trapped. I require a vessel, as does my beloved, Ba'al."
"Whoa! We're talking possession here? No way! I don't believe in all that exorcist bull! It's all Hollywood and made up stories told by priests to keep people in line."
"My dear human, I assure you that it is very real," replied Asherah. "In the times when my beloved lorded over these lands, we inhabited a male and a female who served in leadership over our followers -- the male as the high king and the female as his high priestess and lover."
Shane had a tough time believing all of this. First, this is a statue talking to him in the middle of the desert. Maybe the heat really was getting to him...
