Jeremy Robinson - The Didymus Contingency

“That’s not the best place to be praying,” came a deep voice from behind Tom. The man spoke perfect Hebrew.

Tom looked up and saw the man standing over him. He was rugged, like a man gets from years of physical labor. His facial features gave the initial impression that this was the kind of man you wouldn’t want to get into a barroom brawl with, but at the same time, he had kind eyes.

“I’m…I’m not praying,” Tom said.

“Of course not,” the rugged man said with a chuckle. He reached down for Tom’s hands. “Here, get off the ground before you’re trampled to death.”

Tom took the man’s hands and was pulled to his feet. The rugged man eyed Tom curiously. “Are you a slave or a prince?” the man asked.

“What do you mean?”

The man pointed at Tom’s clothes and said, “You are dressed like a beggar or slave…”

The man took hold of Tom’s wrist and held it so the time watch could be seen and said, “Yet you are adorned with an object that is no doubt from a far away land and worth fifty sheep.”

Tom smiled at the comment. The watch he wore was far more valuable than fifty sheep. It was probably the most valuable object in human history, well, one of the ten most valuable, he thought. He tried to explain, “I’m…from far away, where it is not uncommon for people of average stature to wear such things.”

The rugged man seemed to understand, “That explains why your Hebrew is so bad. Do you not speak Aramaic?”

“No,” Tom replied.

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.

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.