Black Gold

Principles of the 20th century, Arabia. Under the relentless desert sky, two tribal chiefs declare war and confront each other. The bodies of their warriors are scattered across the battlefield. Nesib, emir of Hobeika, is the victor and imposes the conditions on his rival Amar, sultan of Salmaah. They agree not to attempt to seize the no man's land that separates the two kingdoms, known as the Yellow Strip.

As a guarantee, and according to the tribal laws of the time, Nesib will "adopt" or, rather, take as hostages the two sons of Amar, named Saleeh and Auda. Years pass, and Saleeh, who is a born warrior, is dying to escape the gilded cage in which he is trapped and return to his father's lands. However, Auda only cares about books and knowledge.

One day, a businessman from Texas arrives to see Nesib and tells the emir that there is oil in his lands. He promises riches that go far beyond what he can imagine. Nesib already envisions a kingdom with roads, schools, and hospitals built thanks to the black gold hidden beneath the sand. But there is a problem: the oil is in the Yellow Strip.

Saleeh dies in his attempt to escape and return to his father's kingdom. The young Auda must take on the task of negotiating a lasting peace between the sultan and the emir. Nesib decides to marry his beautiful daughter, Princess Leyla, to Auda. Although the union is a political ploy that Nesib uses to avoid being forced to respect the peace treaty he made with Amar, for Auda and Leyla it symbolizes a new beginning, the consecration of the love they have felt since childhood, and the possibility of transforming the world around them. Auda sets off for Salmaah as a peaceful emissary.

Upon reuniting with his father Amar, he discovers another life based on devotion, piety, and humility. His father proposes him an almost impossible task: to cross the terrible desert of the House of Allah accompanied by his half-brother Ali and a band of ragged thieves who will serve as bait. Amar wants to deceive Nesib to have enough time to mobilize an army and conquer the kingdom of Hobeika. During this journey, in which Auda must fight numerous battles against rival tribes and clans, as well as free the beautiful slave Aisha, he will transform from a lover of books into a leader of men.

The time has come for the final confrontation to take control of the Yellow Strip, the two kingdoms, and, above all, the future.