by Dan Edmund
Chapter 29 - Fear and Mystic In The Wild
After dinner I opted for some of the solitude Carlos had spoken about. Thus, just before sunset, I once again followed the track that led up the gorge, and soon passed the bushes where we had gathered our berries. It was a well-marked track, and although steep, I had no troubles at all in making my way up. Carlos had told me that although surrounded by trees, bushes and other vegetation, the track was the same as those in the rest of Paradise, in that they never eroded, never became overgrown, or slippery, or dangerous in any way. So, I continued hiking ever upwards without the slightest impediment or effort, never looking back until finally I reached the top of the cliff. Here, just as the sun began dipping down over the mountainous horizon, I had a clear view of the entire gorge below. About five hundred feet down, and about a quarter of a mile away, our cabin appeared almost toy-like. Yet, the bright gray river, gurgling and cascading through the contours of rounded granite and occasional patches of yellow sand, appeared as prominent and grand as the surrounding cliffs and mountains.
For several minutes I just stood there and mused over this wild, rugged and beautiful scenery. As Carlos and George had said, this world was different to the world I had known these past several weeks. This was no garden paradise, but a pristine wilderness, although still ruled by the same benign guiding hand of God.
I stared hard for a long time at the scenery surrounding me, letting my imagination soar. After a while, I reflected back to my previous two visits to the Cascades. I knew that the Columbia River passed through these ranges, but could this really be the same mighty river below me that eventually flowed into the Pacific? No. Surely not! Perhaps one of its tributaries? I knew the whole geography of the world had dramatically changed since the Earth had become a paradise, so I could not be at all sure. Yet, it could have been. I closed my eyes and tried to visualize it all, the way I had remembered it, and then the way it might have looked during the time of the Lewis and Clark Expedition back in the early part of the nineteenth century. Then, incredibly, for a second or two, as if in another vision within the Light, I thought I saw the famous pioneer expedition making their way down the river below. However, it was only a fleeting moment, and when I opened my eyes, they were gone.
I then wondered about Harry. I closed my eyes again and saw Harry in my imagination, and there beside him was another man that I somehow knew was Thomas More. In my mind, I saw him staring at me. Then, as if through telepathy, he seemed to have told me that he knew I was thinking of him.
Suddenly, I was jolted out of my fantasy by a thunderous roar. I spun round and nearly collapsed in shock as a huge grizzly stood right behind me on its hind legs.
Instinctively, I yelled in terror, then sprang to a nearby tree, scampering up its lower branches. However, when I saw the bear lazily ambling away in the opposite direction, I realized what a fool I had been. Of course, I was never in any danger, not even in the Wilderness. I laughed at my own stupidity and climbed back down the tree.
Then, just as I reached the ground, I was startled by something even stranger than a grizzly. An angel!
However, the initial shock quickly transformed itself to fascination as he again materialized before my very eyes to that old and venerable man that had been the Apostle John. Then he spoke the following words: "You have finished your first mission, now you are on your way to your second, thereafter, you will find your reward." With these words, he vanished.
"That was incredible!"
I turned to the other side and saw Carlos barely ten feet away.
"Carlos!" I exclaimed in surprise. "Where did you come from?"
"I walked here to see where you were. Then I heard you yelling, so I ran. When I reached here, I saw you climbing down this tree. You need not fear -"
"The bear! Yes! Yes! I know. But did you see him, the angel, I mean?"
Carlos solemnly nodded. "That was John, the disciple of our Lord, Jesus Christ."
I nodded. "And he materialized just the way I had first seen him at Anastasis."
"Yes, I know."
"And then he appeared to me again, this time within the Divine Light, when he had told me about Harry's resurrection."
Carlos again nodded. "He also has appeared to me within the Divine Light." He then paused and shook his head in dismay. "But I also did not know that this was the Apostle John until we had that Revelation vision."
"Did you also hear what he had just said? That this was now my second mission, and that I would then find my reward. That must surely be Jenny, don't you think?"
Carlos smiled. "Yes, I think so."
I again gave a whoop of delight. "Yes, it must be! When I had first arrived, he had told me that she would soon join me. Also, Hezekiah Ruther read out her name on the resurrection roll. Even Harry, when we said our farewells on Mount Anastasis, told me that he heard the angel John say the same thing. Now, it's all coming true!"
Carlos nodded and placed his arm around my shoulder. "Yes, it seems so, my friend, but first we need to help this boy, Ron."