The Gospel of the Font

Chapter 9

Oh shit, not this again.

This desert chamber is becoming like a second home. After one actual visit and one vision, this marks the third time I've been here. Once again, there is a fire going in a large bowl in the center of the room that miraculously creates no smoke. The entrance to the chamber is sealed off. Couple that with the fact that I can at least remember going for a swim in the new campus outdoor pool a little while ago and it becomes safe to say I'm dreaming again.

I'm dressed again, but I'm in flowing, black robes that I've never seen before. They're comfy, and I've got nothing on underneath, but they're weird.

I'm sitting in the corner of the room where I found the book on a pedestal. My back is against the shorter wall of the rectangular space. My body is slouched over onto the other wall as if I've been sleeping here. I can't smell anything, but that's not too unusual in a dream. I feel warm, but that's nothing new for these dreams.

I rest my hands against the wall behind me and brace my feet against the floor. I give a push off the wall with my hands and come to a standing position. Taking a few steps towards the center of the room, my eyes scan the small space for any sign of her. "I know you're here," I say. I take a few more steps, circling around the fire pit to the left.

"You might as well come out already," I say as my eyes continue to dart around. I'm not a moron. This is clearly another dream, or vision, or whatever the fuck you want to call it. She's brought me here again. "Let's get this over with," I cry out. My voice echoes loudly against the walls.

My gaze jumps from wall to wall. The light from the flames dances on the engraved markings that cover the stone room. Before the crash, Walter told Tim and I over the phone about what the markings said. They were the names of ancient gods and goddesses from all over the world and every period of history. It was amazing to think about then, but seeing them again, dream or not, really makes it more incredible.

"You truly are remarkable," she says as she finally emerges from a shadowy corner of the chamber. She looks just as before. Her long, dark hair shimmers against the flames and her pale skin seems almost to glow. "You've defied an angel of God twice and stood fearless. Truly my choice has been a good one."

"I still don't understand all this," I say. "What is it that I've been chosen...?" My sentence trails off as Reverend Roberts' words echo through my head. "Wait," I say while stumbling backward. My head swims with frantic thoughts, making me light-headed. I didn't think it was possible to get dizzy while dreaming.

"What is it?" she asks in a motherly sounding tone.

"In the bar, we were watching the news and Roberts called me... he said I was... it can't be." I take a deep breath and try to collect myself. This is not the time to be going crazy, not when she's here and I can possibly get some more information. Boldly, I raise my head to face her again. It's now or never. "Am I the Antichrist?"

She hesitates to answer me, which only makes me dread the answer more. She gives me a half-smile as if to say, 'you're not going to like this, but it's going to be okay'. "That is what they will call you."

"Shit!" I shout. My curse is repeated back to me several times by the echo in the chamber. Roberts was right?! Not only is all this God and heaven and angels and shit real, but I'm the fucking Antichrist?! This can't be happening! I'm just a chick from North Carolina who enjoys playing in the dirt and having no manners!

"Are you fucking kidding me?!" I shout at her. I'm going with my first instinct which is to lash out at the person who seems to be responsible for my new job title. "Why me?!" I scream. "I've never done a religious thing in my life! What could possibly have possessed you to pick me for this?!"