Village of The Holy Land part 1

"I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and achieve, but if needs be it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die."-

Nelson Mandela

Akira got new hair style. He now had dreadlocks.

Shizuka was hard at work keeping the fire running with a bamboo.

Elder: I didn't realize Westerners use bamboo to keep the fire running.

Shizuka: The key to keeping the village safe and stay off grid would be our skills without relying on electricity. I'm actually interested in observing the Palestinian culture after making friends with your grandson.

Elder: Well that's wonderful. Nothing beats making Taboon on the hearth.

Just then, a man entered.

Man: Salaam. (Shizuka exclaims) It's alright. I'm an Irish journalist. My name is Neil Dylandy. I've been talking to the lads who observed the Israeli apartheid. They tell me you're friends with Soran.

Another villager came inside.

Villager: Have we got any spare ropes? I was working on the hay and sliced my hand by mistake.

Shizuka: Try not to bind it too tightly. You might risk a necrosis of the tissue. Try raising the injury above your heart and after applying pressure to the area, then apply pressure to the artery.

Elder: You're a doctor?

Shizuka: No. I was interested in medicine when I was small. So did some reading on it.

Every villagers were so amazed by Shizuka's medical expertise they came to her in hopes she would treat the refugees' wounded.

Kencho was observing the village's use of the manure.

Kencho: Is that cesspit?

Farmer: We can't afford fertilizers nowadays. We are able to recycle the fruits and vegetables we eat here in Palestine by returning it to the soil. We can even replenish the minerals. They say if you dive in, the cesspit will get you ahead in life. Wanna give it a try?

Kencho (spotting a girl): Who's that girl?

Farmer: That's Anju. Her grandfather passed away in Jerusalem. He was a Holocaust survivor.

Kencho: What about her parents?

Farmer: Her father was killed in action while rescuing the hostages from the Hamas. Her mother is in Italy. That dog is all she has. I haven't seen her smile since the funeral. That poor thing.

Kencho (to the girl): Anju, right? I'm working on becoming an entertainer, so I'm practicing my juggling. Wanna watch?

Anju: What's with the Daruma?

Kencho: In Japan, the Gunma prefecture is famous for its Daruma. I perfected this, and I hope to do this in the nude.

Anju: Why are you talking to me?

Kencho: It's common courtesy.

Anju: "Common courtesy"?

Kencho: That's right. In Italy, you always smile to a woman. It would be rude not to.

Anju (starts to chuckle): You don't look Italian.

This was the first time in months Anju began to smile.

Kencho: My name is Kencho. Mind if I call you "Angie"?

Anju: Not at all.

Beatrix observed the watermill.

Beatrix: Wunderbar! Those waterwheels are magnificent!

Villager: They produce the minimum amount of electricity we need.

Beatrix: That's renewable. This is perfect for the Holy Land where there's renewable water!

Villager: Patrol dogs have been sniffing out the refugees. So we fortified the electric fence to keep them out. And one more thing. Be careful not to touch this (shows Beatrix the safety device).

Beatrix: What is it?

Villager: This is an earth-leakage circuit breaker. It shuts off the power if there's an electric leak from the voltage being cranked up too high. It's very dangerous so you mustn't touch this.

Beatrix: Ja! I understand!

Soran told Akira about his family.

Soran: Did I tell you about my grandfather? He was among the pilgrims during the Hajj of '64. He met Malcom X there. My abbahāt had witnessed the Sabra & Shatila massacre.

Akira: He did?

Soran: What I mean is, I wish I were a politician. I think that's something I want to include on my bucket list. Where Palestine can have a democratic election.

Akira: That's a good thought after what you did in Jerusalem.

That evening, Akira and Soran were working in the fields.

Kencho: Hey! Good to see you both out here!

Akira: I hear you made a friend.

Kencho: I even helped with making some chicken dinner! Not my favorite food, though. Gives me this Chicken Run vibe.

Soran: "Chicken Run"?

Kencho: Sorry, I'm guessing you hadn't seen this many Hollywood movies. (Spotting a passerby) Hey, isn't that Shapira? Hey! Shapira! Shalom! Remember us? We went to college together!

Shapira didn't reply. He just took one look at Soran and walked away.

Soran: He's a settler?

Kencho: Yeah. Rumor has it he stopped showing up after six months and became a NEET. Didn't expect to see him again.

In truth, Shapira had been jealous of Soran's success in becoming friends in college and winning the soccer games.

Later that same evening, Soran and his father had their glass of water.

Soran: Yāba, Akira has asked many questions. What was your dream when you were young?

Boulos: Did you know about the Munich Olympics? Innocent people had died there. The Israelis went taking revenge after that incident. I prayed we won't make that same mistake again. After hearing about your actions in Jerusalem, you reminded me of Nelson Mandela. You made me very proud.

Both laughed together.

At the Wall, the Israeli Border Guards were on their night shift keeping a lookout for trespassers.

Israeli Border Guard (in Hebrew): [What in God's name…?]

The IBG spotted a loader. It was hijacked by Shapira and three other settlers. There was Shuman, Dafna, and Dolzi. They drove the loader forward, and very fast. So fast the IBG got out of the way so they wouldn't get hurt. The IBG contacted Jerusalem about the incident.

Jerusalem

Israeli officer: [Nitzav, where you going?]

Allelujah: [There's been a report a loader's been hijacked. I'm going to check it out.]

Israeli officer: [But our district has no jurisdiction!]

Allelujah: [Maybe, but I made a promise to an old friend.]

Back at the village, the elders were performing their salah at the mosque. That was until the Freedom Fighters Five and every villagers outside spotted a loader Shapira had hijacked. But they were not alone. They were secretly followed by the Givati Brigade.

Soran (spotting the IOF): My god.

Boulos: Soran, leave your ammahāt to me, and go help your friends.

Amalya and her second-in-command Segen Johan Bauman led the Brigade into the village.

Shapira smirked as they entered.

Shizuka got the refugees inside the house where they would barricade themselves. But this didn't stop Amalya from pounding on the door.

Shapira (in Hebrew): [Look at em! Running like cowards!]

Shapira lit a dynamite and threw it onto the village. Shuman was the driver on the hijacked loader. He went shooting a revolver. Shizuka gazed in horror.

Shizuka: If we don't stop the ones that hijacked the loader, people will die.

Kencho carried Angie to safety.

Shizuka: We must get everyone in this village out. Best we get to the bridge.

Kencho: What about the electric fence?

Beatrix: It was intended to keep out Israel ground forces and their patrol dogs, actually.

Kencho: Then how did…?

Kencho touched the fence as though wondering if the power had been turned off. It turned out it wasn't.

Soran: You do realize the IOF have the Blackhawk, right?

Shizuka: He's got a point.

Shizuka whacked Kencho with the stick.

Beatrix: Why was the voltage so high? Did someone increase it? Was the ELCB disabled?

Shizuka: Then that explains the electric fence. Whoever did this wants to trap us in!

Just then, they heard a voice.

Shapira: Hey! Soran! Akira! You boys are persistent!

Soran: You led the IOF straight to us!

Shuman: That dope hasn't had us figured out.

Kencho: You did this?

Shapira: Yeah!

Akira: Why?

Shapira: Everybody dies. It would be sad if I didn't get to do what I want, right?

Akira gasped as he saw Shapira had a notebook of his own.

Shapira: You both have a bucked list of your own, huh. What a coincidence! Soran, I want to see you end up in Israeli prison!

Kencho: Screw you! Soran's our friend! What did he ever do to you anyway?

Shapira: I hated Soran the day we met in college. Enjoying life each and every day. I was so disgusted.

Shizuka: What about you?

Shapira: This is our last summer. What's wrong with it?

Akira: Enjoy life if you want to.

Kencho: Akira…

Soran: The Quran says, "As your faith increase, so is your inner peace. Without faith in Him and commitments to do deeds that uplift your faith, any perceived inner peace shall be delusional and unsustainable."

Akira: Yeah, what he said. What happened at college doesn't give you the right to take this out on innocent people. It's time I help Soran's people and raise the flag of freedom.

Shapira: Is that a challenge?

To Be Continued…