by Lee, Summer
The Editor-in-Chief went first and spent half of his time talking about why he believed the phrase “blood moons” was a farce. He ripped global warming and said as a liberal, he was embarrassed that fellow liberals have fallen for the greatest hoax of all time. He hoped that in the next decade, that issue would fade into the background and we could get on to more important things. He received a loud applause. He convinced Sybil that strange moons were a sign of the times, even though the professor did not take that thought seriously.
Sybil was next. Dressed in a red suit and matching pumps, she stood to share. Other than a couple occasional frowns from the audience when Sybil stood, she was liked. She said, “I want to talk about prophetic dreams and the last blood moon. No matter where one is on Earth, a magnificent, colorful full-looking moon will ascend over the eastern horizon at sunset on September 27. It will shine its brightest in the middle of the night, when the sun is shining on the other side of the Earth, below our feet. That’s because the moon lies opposite the sun in the sky at the locality of a whole, round moon. Being opposite the sun, the moon is showing us its fully lighted hemisphere, or “day” side. That’s what makes the moon look full. There is something magical about it.” The audience snickered. “My brother has had dreams that are prophetic in nature. He dreams that he touched the moon and it turned red and bled. I think his dreams are a sign in the sky.” Responses toward her were hospitable.
The third speaker spoke about the problems the world faced from a scientific perspective, but did not really draw any conclusions. He spoke about some of the great risks the world faced from a security position, including the threat of global warming.
Dr. Caladasian was next. He said he was interested in sleep studies. He did not take a conclusive stand as to whether dreams mattered. Otherwise, he simply talked about some of the geopolitical problems facing the world. He said the greatest threat to the human race was still an epidemic of some disease.
A brilliant young Jamaican man was on the team to represent Jesus to the prestigious environment of OIS. Sybil thought that to be interesting. Her mother had been a Jesus person. God rest her soul.
The young man’s name was Solomon Dancer. He wore a navy blue suit and a white shirt. He was bald with a tattoo of a cross behind his right ear and a tattoo of an elderly woman behind his left ear. He had huge hands and a big smile. He said that he hoped to provide some solid testimony for the cause of Christ and Bible prophecy. “I’m no fool,” he said. “I was educated in London. The name of the university is the same as the town in which it resides. It is Oxford, which is about 60 miles northwest of London. Oxford is consistently ranked in the world’s top 10 universities. I was educated around atheists, yet I believe that Jesus is God’s Son.” There were sighs all over the auditorium. “I will speak briefly about the Tetrad, which is four red moons together.” He said that he stated biblical truth. He said, “Blood Moons are mostly common in relationship to events God has planned for Israel. When they happen this close together, it is called a Tetrad. That’s what the space scientists in Texas call it. I call it a Blood Omen. A sign.” He said, “I truly believe the end is nigh.” Reactions toward him were receptive. In fact, he received the second loudest round of applause of the five speakers.
As Sybil was walking out, a young woman bumped into her and slipped a business card into her hand. She said, “Call me,” and disappeared before Sybil could get a good look at her face. I’ll look her up online.
She saw Dr. Caladasian go out the opposite door to a parking lot on the other side of the auditorium. She had hoped they could go out to eat together.
Taking her key out of her purse, she started for her car. “Miss Tania,” a voice called out to her. She turned and saw Solomon with an older lady. “May I speak to you?”
“Of course.” She laughed. “You did a good job.”
“So did you.”
“You reminded me of my mother when I was a small child,” said Sybil, “She was a Christian.”
“What about now?”
“Oh, she’s gone to meet her maker.”
“My sympathies.” He motioned to the lady beside him. “This is my mother. She is a strong Christian woman.”
“Pleased to meet you.”
She turned back to Solomon. “Were you wanting to say something to me, Mr. Dancer?”
“I would like to know more about your brother.” He smiled. “Maybe we can do lunch and talk about it.”
“Certainly.”
Chapter Seven
April 14th, 2:00 p.m.
Seated at the table, they all ordered tuna sandwiches and iced tea. Sybil took a bite and laid her sandwich on her plate. “So you are interested in Eric’s dreams. My brother is an unusual youth. He has always had dreams that come true. But this one was so frightening. He has had the same one for about seven times. It scares me.”
“Do you work with Dr. Caladasian in his laboratory?”
“Yes, he does sleep studies. I am a scientist and assist him.”
“Your brother is one of your subjects.”
“Yes, sorta.” She paused. “Well, yes, we want to help him. His dreams are destroying his nervous system. So much so that he has been reading a Bible, looking for answers.”
“I hope you won’t be offended if I say that I am a Messianic Jew.”
“That is fine. My brother is half Jewish as well.” She smiled. “Your accent is pretty. What is it?”
“Jamaican. I was born in Hungary. I have some Jewish blood.”
“And he flaunts it.” His mother spoke up. “I must tell you that in these critical times, Israelis must join together to pray to for peace.”
“Jewish rabbis all associate the current Tetrad with Jewish redemption,” said Solomon. “The first and third Blood Moons, in this current Tetrad cycle, coincide with the celebrated Passover. And then the second and fourth line up with the Feast of Tabernacles. This is a sign from God that something big is coming. For example, the Talmud states, “In the Hebrew month of Nisan our forefathers were redeemed from Egypt, and in Nisan we will be redeemed from our enemies.”
“So you are saying that my brother’s dreams would be a message to the Jews.”
“I do believe so.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
Visiting for a while, they exchanged information about each other’s childhoods, favorite foods and worst fears.
* * *
Eric had time for a much-needed rest. Laying on the couch, watching Big Brother, one of his favorite TV shows, he vegetated. But then he heard clicking noises against the window. He walked over to the window and looked out to see what it was. The front lawn was covered with white hailstones the size of marbles. “What the heck?”
When he lay back down on the couch, a news break was on. The newsman was talking about the war in the Middle East.
“There is always war in the Middle East,” Eric said aloud.
It was as if the newsman heard him. “This is like no other. Isis can move faster because of modern technology. Every foot soldier has contact with their general at all times on a cell phone. An unusual war for sure.”
Eric had a lump in his throat. Fearfully, he remembered his mother and what she said in his dream. She wanted someone to save her son. But he did not feel lost.
Chapter Eight
April 15th, 6:21 a.m.
Day of the First Tetrad
It was early morning hours when Eric followed Sybil to their rental car at the Portland airport. They both traveled light. Eric was happy that the trip was paid for with a grant which would provide follow up information on his dream study.
Sybil seemed to know her way around in the big city, which surprised Eric.
“When were you in Portland, sis?”
She smiled and playfully pushed his arm. “Remember all those postcards I sent you from all of those places I traveled on my grant? Guess what? Portland was one of them.” Her sarcasm did not escape her brother.
They got
to their rental Toyota. She climbed in the driver’s side.
“I don’t even get to drive?” he questioned.
She put her sunglasses on and raised her chin toward him. “Do you know where we’re going? No. Thank you for playing. Now shut up and enjoy the view.”
Following the directions on the business card, she drove for what seemed like hours.
Eric lost interest in enjoying the Oregon view and turned to play Minion Rush on his smart phone. He kept the volume low so he wouldn’t disturb his sister.
“You’ve been very quiet, Eric. That’s not like you.”
Without looking up from his game, he said, “You told me to shut up, so I’m being a good boy.” He put his phone away and straightened up with a sense of urgency. “Yeah. If you got to hear me talk, then tell me where the heck we’re going! I’ve only been here for a few hours and I already can’t wait to leave! This scenery is stale.”
She smiled. “It’ll get exciting soon, bro. Hang in there. We’re almost there.”
She pulled off the main highway and onto a dirt road. He looked at her as if she was crazy.
Her smile widened.
“Eric. If I would have told you where we were going, you would have never come.”
“That’s a heck of a thing to tell me now!” he bellowed. “What’s up with you? You never used to play tricks on me before like this!”
“It’s not a trick, Eric. You’ll understand more when we get to her house. You have to understand that as a scientist, I have to look at all possibilities. Even the non-scientific ones.”
He rolled his eyes and stared out the window. Sybil said, “We both know that you have a wild imagination.”
He said, “Are you taking me to someplace like a secret military facility or to some weird psychic.” He wouldn’t put anything past her.
The road became rougher as they went through a narrow row of trees. That was where the road ended. Eric looked back behind them and then to the front in a panic. It was pitch dark. “I want some answers now, sis, or I swear I will jump out of this car!”
He looked at her in a staring game of chicken. His heart was racing, while she seemed abnormally calm. He placed his hand on the steering wheel and waited for her to slow down. She didn’t.
He had enough of the games. He looked at the door, unbuckled his seat belt, and took in a deep breath. He was going to call her bluff. She would never let him jump from a moving car.
He opened the door, just as she slammed on the brakes. The momentum pushed him onto the ground. He rolled several feet into a stack of hay. He rolled so fast that he ended up being completely covered in hay.
Sybil got out of the car and just laughed at him. “Look, we’re here.”
“Where is here?”
He looked around. In front of them was a rustic log cabin. It appeared to have been made several decades earlier, or more. There was gray smoke billowing from the chimney. It had a front porch with a homemade rocking chair and a few folding chairs. There was also a small card table folded up and placed against the side of the cabin.
Eric managed to stand up, as he furiously brushed the hay from his clothes, hair, and face. When they got back home, he would have words with Sybil, who was now waiting patiently for him on the porch.
He caught up with her just as she was about to knock on the front door. The door opened before her hand had a chance to connect with the wood. Before them stood a young woman dressed in blue jeans with slits in the legs and a white blouse with ruffles on the sleeve and at the collar. She wore no shoes or socks. She was a thin girl who had purposely drawn dark circles around her green eyes. Her chestnut colored hair was wavy with red streaks throughout. She had the darker skin of someone who loves to be out in the sun. She appeared as if she just woke up. Sybil showed her the card. “Is this you?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“What do you do?”
“Remember, you called me.”
Sybil nodded. “I know.”
That was all information Sybil was getting.
Eric stepped onto the porch, still removing hay from his hair and his mouth. He tried to contain his surprise of how the girl was dressed. He didn’t want to judge.
The girl’s eyes darted all over her two guests with a concerned look, as she extended one arm and leaned on the doorway. She then looked deep in Sybil’s eyes and smiled. When she looked deep in Eric’s eyes, she looked disgusted.
“What?” he said, looking around. “I used mouthwash!”
The girl saw the hay in his hair. “Good. You are a vegetarian. Come.”
She had a European accent and a deep voice to go with it. Her English was broken. It sounded like she might have been from Bulgaria or Romania.
“Gypsy?” Sybil asked, as she entered the one-story cabin.
The girl turned her head slightly with a serious grin. “Isabella.”
Eric narrowed his eyes, trying to figure her out. “What’s that accent?”
“Hungarian.” She sighed. Isabella gave him a look of impatience as she folded her hands and closed her eyes. “Just sit down.”
The cabin had one main room and three smaller rooms, believed to be her bedroom, the kitchen, and the bathroom. There was a huge fireplace in the middle with a blazing fire and no other light. The curtains were pulled down on all of the windows.
There was a homemade round table set in the middle of the living room, with no other furniture around the walls. There were three chairs at the table.
“Sit,” said Isabella, as she forced a smile. Eric looked with surprise at his sister, as she sat down. He was about to sit, but first had a question. “Excuse me?”
“Sorry to interrupt your… seance, or whatever you’re doing out here. But! Can I get a glass of water?” He raised his eyebrows at her.
“No beverage at the table,” was her reply. “Sit.”
He then banged on the table in triumph. “I knew it! I figured you as some sort of psychic! Hah! And I’m right.”
Isabella narrowed her eyes at Sybil. “You said he needs my help. Why does he act like an untrained monkey?”
Sybil cleared her throat and turned toward Eric. “Bro. Isabella is going to try to make some sense of your dreams. That’s all.”
“I thought that’s what all the electrodes and the fancy machines were for,” he replied, totally confused. “You have deceived me.”
Sybil licked her lips and continued, “Yes. We tried to decipher the dream through science, but I believe that there is more to this than we might think. I got Isabella’s business card yesterday at the debates. I did a lot of research on her and then called her. Isabella has references from several friends of friends. She is not easy to get, unless you know exactly what you’re looking for.”
Eric narrowed his eyes at his sister. “What exactly are we looking for now, Sybil? Someone who can talk to ghosts?”
“No ghosts,” Isabella said abruptly. “No hocus pocus, or witches. I read messages in the stars and have other spectral practices.”
“This is all too weird.” Eric stood up. “I’m not going to go through with this, Sybil! I’m not going to sit here while this medium tries to decipher my dreams. For all I know it could be the…”
“End of the world?” Isabella replied.
“Yeah... I just need some fresh air.” Eric stood and went outside.
First Blood Moon
Eric waited as the late afternoon faded into evening. The hot Portland sun passed over the ocean with colors of pink, orange, and yellow. As the sun went down, the moon came out.
Eric took a small New Testament out of his pocket and read from it. He thought about what it said about worshiping a beast. Those who worshiped him would not escape the plague—the plague of the sickening sores. He had not seen the beast in his dream. He was also called the anti-Christ. What did that scripture mean? Was this a real beast or a man? Eyes glued to the sky, Eric waited for something big to happen. Nothing happened, so he waited longer.
&
nbsp; * * *
Ever since his first disturbing dream, Eric followed stories about the blood moons. There was to be a blood moon tonight, April 15. This was the night for the first blood moon since 1967. While Eric was staring at the moon, a corner turned ruddy shade. The color slowly moved toward the center. It was happening. As a dark cloud came under it, he remembered reading that a dark cloud was to come over the people who belong to the beast. The book of Revelation tells of the people cursing the one true God. They would beg for the rocks to fall on them. That could be soon.
He thought about the times he had heard the voice of God in his head. The voice in his head told Eric that he was called to tell of a cleansing rain to pour over God’s people. Eric was being called by God to be a prophet. The voice in his head said, “You will tell people that God will take vengeance on the earthly ones who have shed innocent blood. The evil ones who have mocked my servants will be punished. Right now, in the Middle East, evil men are murdering and martyring God’s messengers. They blaspheme the Lord’s name. You must tell them that they will not get away with it.”
“What about the beast?” Eric whispered his prayer.
“Those who follow the beast will be deceived, because they do not know the time is short. Nor do they care. Those that choose the darkness rather then the light will follow the evil one. After a short time, it will be over. Unbelievers will not stand in that day.
“He then heard the voice of Jesus say, ‘Behold! I come quickly!’”
Suddenly, it was all quiet. Eric’s hands dripped with sweat. He felt weak all over. Sitting on a stump, he dropped his face into his hands and cried.
He felt that he was being washed all over by a supernatural spring.
Chapter Nine
April 15th, 6:00 p.m.
Sybil stayed inside the cabin to visit with Isabella and sip herbal tea. “He cannot run from destiny, Sybil,” said Isabella, showing excessive interest in Eric. “Tell me again about his blood moon dreams.”
