The Didymus Contingency (9 page)

The man didn’t seem shocked, “If you plan to stay in Israel, you must learn.”

Tom smiled, “I’ll try.”

“You look weary, my friend. Come let me buy you a drink,” the rugged man offered.

“That would be great,” Tom said with a tinge of guilt, knowing he shouldn’t even be talking to this man, but he thought one drink with a historical nobody shouldn’t do much to alter the future. Besides, he was as thirsty as hell.

The rugged man led Tom down the road. As Tom began to walk with the man, he brushed his hands off against his dirty robe. Brush...Brush...Brush. Dust clapped away into the air, revealing Tom’s bare palms, which were no longer cut or bleeding. All that remained were dry bloodstains. His wounds were healed completely, as if they had never been. Perhaps from lack of pain, or confusion from his whirlwind tour of the past, Tom never noticed.

—SIX—

Impact

28 A.D.

4:46 P.M.

Bethany, Israel

A flock of sheep contentedly chewed on juicy grass atop one of several rolling, green hills. As though it could sense something amiss, a single sheep at the center of the pack raised its head, like a lighthouse amid a sea of white. It searched the area with nervous eyes, scanning back and forth. The wary sheep took a step back and bumped into a second sheep, passing on a wave of nervous tension like a shockwave emanating from the center of the flock to its very edges. The entire flock raised their heads, ears at the ready for the slightest noise or smell of a predator.

Boom!

A bright light exploded at the center of the flock and the noise created was like thunder. Several sheep passed out and hit the ground with fluffy thuds. The rest burst into panic, hopping and kicking around the field, wailing like broken police sirens.

David squinted and attempted to focus his eyes, trying to make sure he was really seeing what he thought he was seeing. The confusing side effects of time travel combined with the flurry of obnoxious activity surrounding him, was dizzying. David’s head churned and his vision muddied. White clouds of sheep danced around him while the glowing, blue sparkles fluttered to the ground. It was like a sickening merry-go-round. The flock’s maddening cacophony became noxious. The pungent smell of sheep dung and urine added to the cauldron of confusion. David planted his hands firmly on the ground, partly to get some kind of bearing, partly to brace himself as he wretched into the grass with force.

The entire flock stopped their wild flailing and stared at David, who was wiping off his mouth. David looked up into hundreds of dark eyes, probing him. Where was he? Had he miscalculated? Was this the right time?

A voice from the distance answered his questions. “What was that noise?” the voice said in Aramaic.

“I don’t know! Did you see the light?” came a reply.

The two men ran closer.

Feeling like Ulysses evading the Cyclops, David stayed close to the ground, under the sheep, half crawling and half dragging himself in the opposite direction from the approaching shepherds. He managed to slide his way to the bottom of the hill and clambered into a patch of trees. He finally felt moderately safe and turned to watch the wary shepherds.

The two shepherds walked through the herd, looking for anything out of the ordinary. They had never seen the sheep so upset, even when the lions attacked. But they were calm now and no apparent danger could be found. As the shepherds prepared to leave, one of them stepped in something wet. The man looked down and grimaced. He was standing in David’s vomit.

The man’s eyes burst with realization and he yelled, “Someone’s in the flock!”

The men split up and began hurrying the sheep in all directions, attempting to spur any intruders from hiding. Sheep poachers had robbed them once. They would not let it happen again.

David spied from a safe distance, but he believed the search would expand into the surrounding area soon enough. He knew with the amount of money he had, he could probably bribe the shepherds from taking any action against him. But then, what’s to stop them from robbing him? Then these two shepherds would become rich and without doubt change a portion of history. David realized he should have never brought the money. If he failed and couldn’t return to the future, better he be a beggar or dead.

David rubbed his eyes in an attempt to clear his head. He braced himself against a tree, as he stood up. The world was spinning less quickly now and David stumbled deeper into the woods.

Five minutes later, he cleared the tree line and emerged onto a dirt road. He stumbled up a hill, following the indicator on his watch. He knew Tom was close by, within a square mile from his current position, and probably in some kind of trouble. He imagined having to rescue Tom from a prison, or worse: having to dig up Tom’s dead body.

David neared the top of the hill and noticed he was palpably wet. The temperature hadn’t struck him until now. He thought it must be over ninety degrees and the humidity was tangible. He had already spent more time in the sun then he would during a good year. He tried not to think of his skin roasting, but the itchy tickle on his arms served as a constant reminder.

After reaching the top of the hill, David saw a view that erased all concerns from his mind. Before him was an Israel David had never imagined. Fertile and green, it was nothing like modern Israel. At the bottom of the hill was a city, which he believed to be Bethany. A thought struck David then—he had stood on this hill once before, on the side of the road as a teenager hitchhiking with his friends...two thousand years in the future.

How the world had changed. David’s view was green for miles. Trees and flower-speckled grass covered the hills. He saw why this was called the Promised Land and finally understood why this small chunk of land would be fought over for generations. Emotions swirled through David and seemed to worsen the effects of the time travel. Nausea took hold of him and squeezed until he fell to his knees. He felt like crawling into bed and sleeping for days, but the stony road would have to do. As David’s mind slipped, he lay down in the center of the road and got comfortable.

As David began to slip from consciousness he heard a noise—a crunching of soil on the road next to him. He looked up and saw a man, a woman and a donkey standing above him. The last thing David heard was the man say, “Not another one.”

*   *   *   *   *

When David woke up, he had insisted that the kind people who had brought him to town not help him any further. He quickly shooed them on their way and left to attend the important business of locating Tom.

David became engrossed by the new world around him. The smells of flowers and foreign foods cooking enticed his nose. And the sight and sounds of these ancient people, animals and buildings was almost enough to completely distract David from his mission. He caught sight of a pair of Roman soldiers patrolling the street and was reminded of Captain Roberts, the man with a gun in the future. David knew that if he didn’t find Tom soon, he might alter the future. At the very least, he and Tom might be on the receiving end of a bullet, eight hundred years before gunpowder was invented.

As the sun began to fall, David frantically searched the streets of Bethany. The watch was great for generalizing Tom’s location, but David found it impossible to pin down his exact whereabouts. He grew desperate as the hours wore on and decided that simply asking people if they had seen Tom wouldn’t make any changes to the future and would aid in the finding of Tom, thus preventing a larger disaster. David asked twenty people about Tom, describing his dress, his poor verbal skills, and his physical characteristics. It was a half hour before David got a bite.

“The buffoon knocked me over and tried to steal my food!” the old woman shouted.

David couldn’t believe his ears. Tom was only here for a few hours and had already left a lasting impression, at least on this woman. How much more damage had he already done?

“This man, what is he to you?” the woman asked, growing suspicious of David.

“He’s my friend,” David replied. “He’s out of his mind and I am trying to find him before he causes any permanent damage.”

“I saw him enter a tavern with a man who had pity on the fool.”

“Which way?”

The women stabbed her crooked finger toward the east.

“Thank you for your kindness,” David said, as he moved past the women in the direction she pointed.

“Kindness has nothing to do with it,” the woman explained. “Personally, I hope the Romans have run him through already, but if they haven’t at least maybe you can get him off the streets.”

David picked up his pace.

How many taverns can there be in one town
, thought David. He had searched three already and had seen no sign of Tom. The sun was almost completely extinguished and David had no light source to search at night. He loathed the thought, but he knew he had to find lodging for the night. He prayed he didn’t take the room where an important traveler was supposed to stay or where one of his ancestors was supposed to be conceived. The possibilities for tragedy were incalculable.

David decided on a tavern that also rented rooms. He could make one last search for Tom and get a room at the same time. He changed his mind about the money, realizing that without it he would have been sleeping under the stars and most likely been pilfered in his sleep.

Drinking patrons filled the tavern and greeted David with their eyes as he entered. As he walked through the tavern, he scanned people’s faces, taking care not to linger too long and offend. David approached a man he assumed was the tavern’s owner and shouted a question that couldn’t be made out because the noise from the next room was ear-splitting. Before David could repeat his question at a higher volume, he heard a familiar laugh mixed in with the shouts from the adjoining room.

He made a break for the side room. As he entered, David clumsily tripped over a jug and fell to the floor in a confused heap. The entire room fell as silent as death and then, all at once, burst into laughter. David found a thick hand thrust into his face, offering to pick him up. He took hold and was pulled quickly to his feet by a strong arm. David looked at the rugged man and said, “Thank you.”

“You’re all right?” asked the man.

David nodded.

“You’re the second man I’ve pulled off the ground today. It’s becoming something of a habit,” the man said with a smile. “Why don’t you join our table, have a drink? I must warn you, our conversations are being held in Hebrew as our other new friend cannot speak Aramaic, if you can believe that.”

“I—Thank you, but no, I...” Other new friend? David whipped his eyes toward the table and saw Tom, sitting with a group of men, laughing at a joke! He was more than interacting! He was forming relationships!

Tom glanced at David and didn’t recognize him in this setting, with David dressed as he was, but then he took another look and the smile vanished from his face.

“David?”

“You two know each other?” the rugged man asked.

“Tom, we need to talk,” David said in Hebrew with as much authority as he could muster.

“How did you find me so quickly?” Tom asked.

“Not now,” David said while making a face with his eyes that screamed, “not in front of the locals!”

The rugged man looked slightly confused by this exchange but was unwilling to let the disturbance ruin the night’s fun. “This is a friend of yours?” he asked of Tom.

“Yes,” Tom replied.

David grabbed Tom and pulled him away from the table and the rugged man with a sudden burst of energy. David’s whispers were loud enough to hurt Tom’s ear. “You’re interacting with them! Do you have any idea what the consequences could be?”

“Nothing that will alter the future,” Tom said. “These men would be here with or without me and the conversation hasn’t gone beyond dirty pigs, Samaritans and the Ten Commandments, of all things.”

“I’m taking you back... Now,” David demanded.

“How?” Tom asked. “You wouldn’t dare do it in front of this many people. And we both know you can’t physically drag me far enough out of town.”

David’s rage was close to meltdown proportions. “Tom, this is stupid! Even for you!”

The rugged man interrupted with a smile, “Come friends, sit and drink!”

Under normal circumstances David loathed being rude, but knew the magnitude of what was at stake justified his next words, “Not now! Stay quiet and let us talk!”

“David, cool down.” Tom implored. “An angry outburst is more likely to have negative effects on time then a few friendly drinks.”

David took a breath and collected himself. “You mean like the little old lady you tried to rob?”

“You met her?” Tom asked, his forehead creased with concern.

“Yes, but that’s beside the point. Any effect on time is a negative effect. We need to go back, and go back now.”

“But I didn’t try to rob her, I just—”

“I don’t care what happened. We’re leaving.”

“No.”

“What?”

“No.”

“This isn’t funny. You were drunk and I can forgive it, but now you’re being ridiculous.”

“I am serious. I’m not leaving,” Tom said. “I’m going to do what I came here to do, prove that Jesus is a fraud.”

“Have you even stopped to consider the consequences? The next two thousand years of global, human history is shaped by the events of Jesus’s life.”

“I’m not a moron,” Tom said. “I have no intention of sharing what I discover with anyone other than you. Don’t you see, I care about you enough to risk my life to save yours from a meaningless existence spent believing in a lie.”

“Like Megan.”

“David, if you had seen what happened to Megan, if you had been there. Seen the life in her eyes before she died, you’d—”

“I did see it.”

Tom’s breath caught in his lungs.

“Before I came here I went to Zambia. I saw her. I saw the men who killed her. They almost killed me too. I risked changing the future once already just so I could understand what motivated you to come here and try something as insane as this.”