Under the Blood Moon (The Stargazers Trilogy Book 1) (5 page)

Chapter Ten

April 15
th
, 9:00 p.m.

Meanwhile, Sybil called out to him, showing she was concerned about her brother. She indicated to Isabella that she wanted to leave her chair. Isabella shot her a look to remain where she was. The table itself was shaking now, as Isabella grabbed hold of Eric’s hands once again. Isabella blew on her fingers, showing she felt the overwhelming heat emanating from Eric’s body, but she still held on. Sybil was shocked.

The table continued to shake and move about the room. Sybil kept a close eye on it and realized something shocking. It wasn’t just the table that was moving. Sybil looked around the cabin in a panic and noticed that the entire building was now shaking.

Glassware crashed to the floor. Everything that was not secured fell to the floor and shattered. Sybil let out a screech as one of the legs gave way on her chair, sending her crashing to the floor. She had no idea if something supernatural was going on or something worse. Could it be the curse of God?

Eric’s eyes opened wide as he looked helplessly at his sister. His eyes were bloodshot and completely red, as he let go of Isabella’s hands. When he did, the room became calm. “Earthquake!” Sybil shouted as she ran to her brother and Isabella. Hugging Eric, she said, “Are you alright?”

“Don’t know.” All three stood still, as if they realized that there was something bigger going on than what happened at the table. Eric said, “I believe that earthquake was worldwide.”

Sybil hugged him again. “I’m sorry this happened.”

“It will pass!” Isabella held up her hands, as the tremors slowed down. “Remain where you are! Both of you.”

Both siblings looked fearfully at each other, as if they were reading each others minds. Sybil wondered if coming here was the best course of action. She motioned to him with her eyes, and he nodded that he understood, as they mentally prepared an escape plan.

Being obedient, everyone stayed exactly where they were, as the tremors died out completely. Isabella smiled, as if she knew how long the earthquake would last.

“We get Sybil a new chair, then back to the table,” Isabella said, as if nothing had happened.

After everything quieted down, Isabella poured tea for Sybil and Eric and then sat down at the table.

Isabella looked abnormally calm. “I tell you now the meaning of the dream and the Blood Moon. You came to me for a reason. Right?”

She breathed in and let it out slowly. “There have been dreams and visions for a while now about the end of the age. It is only recently that we connect them to the Blood Moons. I am not the only one who prophesies. Some have proclaimed the acceptable year of the Lord. Others have prophesied the number of days as found in Daniel. For me the prophecy is to be 1,350 days from my first vision.”

“So you have visions like Eric’s dreams?”

“Yes. That is why I need Eric.”

Eric stood up and was noticeably freaked out. “What the heck are you talking about? Will someone explain to me the gibberish she just spit out, please?”

Isabella looked angry, for the first time since they all sat down. “I’ll not to be questioned! I did not seek you out! You called me, Sybil.”

“You put your card in my hand.”

“Humph.” Isabella snarled. “Listen to me. Exactly 1,350 days from my first vision will be September 28, 2015! Others have visions of the same times.” She got in Eric’s face. “Understand?”

Eric did not like being yelled at. “Big deal! September 28th is my birthday! You knowing my birthday doesn’t make you a psychic! Sybil could have told you!”

He looked at his sister for confirmation, but she stood there shaking her head.

Isabella stood in shock with her hands covering her mouth. Tears started to roll down her cheeks, as she had a look of sympathy for Eric. “You have to believe in your gift.”

Eric didn’t like where it was going. He looked back and forth from Sybil to Isabella, as if one of them was going to offer him a perfectly logical explanation. “Sybil?”

“Please to calm down,” Isabella said, in her deep Hungarian accent. “I will explain. I apologize for my outburst. I need to stay focused. Tonight is the first of four Blood Moons over the next year and a half.”

“What exactly is a… Blood Moon?” Eric managed, after slowing his breathing down.

“I will explain.” Isabella’s eyes lit up and she began her description. “When the Earth passes between sun and moon, this is called lunar eclipse. There’s one tonight. Sometimes, during the eclipse, the rays of the sun will curve around the Earth. This causes moon to look red. For only fourth time in last 500 years, there will be four Blood Moons surrounding Jewish feast days. 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 call it, anyway. I call it a Blood Omen. A sign.”

“You seem upset, but that’s a Jewish belief, Isabella,” Sybil added. “You’re not Jewish.”

“I am half. Not just for Jewish people,” she replied. “End is nigh.”

“What does this have to do with me and my birthday?” Eric asked adamantly.

Isabella glared at him, but did not put him down. “Your dreams. There’s always someone who dreams. Like when God took Israel to Egypt, he gave Joseph dreams first. This time, it’s you.”

“What makes me so special?” he asked, almost pleading.

She shrugged. “Don’t know. Don’t know if anyone ever knew. But you will still have a final word. From the time the first trumpet blows, until the time of the seventh trumpet… those that will hear will know that the Messiah is the Lord.”

She was almost trance-like when she mentioned the trumpets. She almost collapsed, but Eric caught her in time. “Gracious.”

Sybil was puzzled by everything Isabella had said, so far. “Isabella. That part about the trumpets sounds an awful like it came out of the Bible. Is this the real end of the world you’re talking about here?”

Almost as if on cue, the cabin started to shake violently. More dishes and glasses crashed to the floor again. Most pictures fell from the wall.

“Let’s get out of here before the roof caves in,” said Sybil.

“No.” Isabella sat firm.

Eric and Sybil lifted Isabella out of the chair and dragged her out of the cabin. As soon as they were all out, the door slammed shut behind them. The ground shook under their feet. Turning back toward Isabella’s cabin, Sybil shouted, “Look at the cabin!” It was all lit up. A dark red light streamed forth out of every crack of the cabin. The light was blinding as it shot out in three rays of hot energy. The laser-like beams brushed by each one of the trio. As it did, it seared their skin.

Grabbing each others hands, they backed up slowly, so as not to be ambushed by the heat. The light emanating from the cabin continued and was blinding. Sybil could not think of what the cause was. “Why is this happening, Isabella?”

“I have no idea.” No one could say anything in response. Fear gripped them all as they froze in their tracks.

The Earth continued to shake. The ground shaking grew into a sizable tremor again. “The trees. There is safety of the trees,” said Isabella.

Remembering his dream, Eric agreed. He said, “Run for the trees, sis. Run quickly.” The trio backed up toward the trees they thought should be safe.

At that moment, large chunks of wood broke off from the cabin with a loud rumbling sound, which seemed to come from within. All of a sudden there was dead silence. Eric, Sybil, and Isabella were frozen in place. None of them could not tear their eyes away from the enigma. Never had any of them seen anything of that magnitude.

Eric was the first to speak. Looking around, he said quietly, “What now?”

“No idea,” said Isabella. The cabin appeared to inhale, as the walls cracked and were sucked toward the center of the dwelling, Then, all at once, the cabin imploded with a tremendous force. The light illuminated the entire area, as the three bewildered voyeurs were blown backward. They flew almost 20 feet in the air, each landing in a different place.

Sybil rolled into a nearby patch of trees, hitting her side against the trunk. It sufficiently knocked the air out of her.

Isabella was thrown back onto some dirt and gravel, causing small cuts all over her face and arms.

Eric was simply knocked off his feet, as he held his arms over his face to shield himself from the barrage of wood fragments. Instantly, he let out a scream of agony.

Sybil managed to get to her feet, in spite of the searing pain in her side. She saw the ground littered with small pieces of flaming wood. Not knowing what to do, she let her thoughts wander. Nothing in science could explain what just happened and she had no theories. Nothing! Her training and experiments and labs didn’t prepare her for what she was experiencing. Sybil did not consider herself a scientist governed only by scientific laws. She knew that there are things in life that can’t be explained. Scientists had tried to force their unproven opinions down people’s throats and called them facts, but she wasn’t like that. She needed proof or at least a gut extinct. She knew that most people would believe anything scientists told them, because they were in positions of authority. She started to hate the field she trained in just because of all of the glory grabbers. She knew there was something bigger than what mankind could create.

“Are you okay?” Eric turned to face his sister.

“Yes.” She felt desperation. He looked the same way. “How about you? Are you okay?”

“Yeah. Where’s Isabella?” He walked away to look for her and disappeared from sight.

Sybil could not see either one of them. What was going on with her brother or Isabella? She wanted to move to try to gain a better advantage, but her movement was limited. Flaming cinders were everywhere. She called out Eric’s name, but was drowned out by crackling sounds of Mother Nature. All she could do was hope he and Isabella were alright.

Standing alone, she wondered if she should have paid more attention to the Bible.

Chapter Eleven

April 15
th
, 11:00 p.m.

Several pieces of wood sliced across Eric’s arms, embedding splinters into his skin. He returned to the cabin, but all he saw was the foundation. Big slabs of the walls lay burning on the ground. While looking for Isabella, Eric picked the small pieces of wood from his limbs.

The tremors started again with a stronger intensity. They gradually increased, as more trees were being uprooted. There were some places where the broken ground rose up forming a hill.

Small cracks formed around the roots, as branches broke off the still standing trees, and flew in all directions. Eric braced himself against the same tree that caused him damage. He saw Isabella was trying to make her way toward him. He was stuck in one place, not knowing which way to turn. His fear had taken control. Isabella approached him and seized his hands. “I’ll help you. Hold on tight.”

“I am.” He had no strength of voice.

Isabella said, “If we get torn apart, you must face what comes next, alone.”

“I understand. Where is Sybil? I can’t see her. She has disappeared.”

Isabella acted concerned, as she told Eric, “As soon as the storm dies down, we’ll look for her.”

Eric was frightened. “Don’t just talk about it. Help me look for her now.”

Isabella snapped at him. “I’m doing all I can here, trying to take care of you.”

There was a cracking noise, as the ground split beneath them. Next, a loud rumbling of moving Earth drowned out any hope of conversation. Walls of fire shot up from the widening cracks in the ground. Eric was ripped away from Isabella. He expected to die.

The movement stopped. The sounds died down. “What’s going on, Isabella? My sister is in real trouble here, but you don’t seem concerned. Shouldn’t we be looking for Sybil?”

“Now that the earthquake is over, she’ll find us. You don’t understand who you are.” Isabella became very serious as she stared at Eric. She also lost her strong accent. “You are special, Eric. For some reason you have a connection to the Blood Moon. There are always a few random people who become connected through unknown means. But you are the best. We’ve searched for someone like you. You should be honored!”

“Not really.”

She started toward him, showing her teeth. “Don’t contradict me.”

“I am nothing without Sybil.” He backed away as far as he could, with a look of revolt. “You’re insane, Isabella! You have a devil living inside you. I’m out of here and finding my sister right now!” He looked around for a clear path that may take him back to his sister among all of tremors, fire, and flaming wood.

Suddenly, Eric felt a sharp pain in his neck, like a wasp sting. He grabbed his neck and turned around quickly. There behind him was a figure in a flame-retardant suit with a matching mask. The figure had a hypodermic needle in his hand, with which he had stabbed Eric. He said, “Heh heh.”

Isabella whispered something to the figure, with an evil look in her eye.

“No,” Eric managed, as his body became weak and his head started to spin. He tried to reach for the figure to pull off his mask, while also trying to stay conscious. It appeared that he wouldn’t be able to do either. He collapsed into a coma, but could still hear them talking.

“I had nothing to do with the tremors,” the figure said, in a sufficiently muffled voice. “Just the fire.”

“I know,” Isabella said. “You know where to take him. We need him to track the Blood Moons. He is our only hope to learn the secret. I’ll get back to Sybil and take care of her later. She’s surely frantic by now.”