Chapter Three
Next to a window in first class, a writer sat hunched over his laptop. He shut down the machine, vowing to get back to his journal later. At thirty, Cameron Williams was the youngest ever senior writer for the prestigious Global Weekly. The envy of the rest of the veteran staff was quite clear and obvious. Cameron considered himself quite lucky and privileged. Cameron either scooped on the rest of the Veteran staff or was assigned to the best stories in the world. Both admirers and detractors at the magazine called him Buck, because they said he was always bucking tradition and authority. Buck genuinely thought he lived a sensational and compelling life, as he was an eyewitness and an observer of some of the most pivotal events in history.
A year and two months earlier, his January 1 cover story had taken him to Israel to interview Chaim Rosenzweig and had resulted in the most bizarre and peculiar event he had ever experienced.
The elderly Rosenzweig had been the only unanimous choice for Newsmaker of the Year in the history of Global Weekly. Its staff had tried to avoid nominating anyone that would be an obvious pick as Time's Man of the Year. But Rosenzweig was a logical choice to select for an interview. Cameron Williams had gone into the staff meeting ready and determined to defend and stand up for Rosenzweig and debate against whatever media star the others would usually advocate for.
Cameron knew that it would make sense to interview Rosenzweig. He seemed intelligent and wise enough. His wisdom and tenacity were certainly admirable. Cameron did not see a reason not to interview the man and learn more about the latter's first-hand experiences.
Cameron was pleasantly surprised when executive editor Steve Plank opened with, "Anyone want to nominate someone stupid and indolent, such as anyone other than the Nobel prizewinner in chemistry?"
The senior staff members looked at each other, shook their heads, and pretended to begin leaving. "Put the chairs on the wagon, the meeting is over", Buck said. "Steve, I'm not angling for it, but you know the guy and he trusts me."
"Not so fast, Cowboy", a rival said, then appealed to Plank. "You letting Buck assign himself now?"
"I might", Steve said. "And what if I do?"
"I just think this is a technical piece, a science story", Buck's detractor muttered. "I'd put the science writer on it."
"And you'd put the reader to sleep", Plank said. "C'mon, you know the writer for showcase pieces comes from this group. I certainly believe Buck has acquired the tutelage and comprehension to interview Rosenzweig. You know he has the skill and charisma for that. And this is not a science piece any more than the first one Buck did on him. This has to be told so the reader gets to know the man and understands the significance of his achievement."
"Like isn't that apparent and clear. It only changed the course of history."
"I'll make the assignment today", the executive editor said. "Thanks for your willingness, Buck. I assume everyone else here is willing as well." Expressions of eagerness filled the room, but Buck also heard grumbled predictions that the fair-haired boy would get the nod. Which he did.
All the approval and optimism from his boss, as well as the competition from his peers, only made him even more determined to surpass himself with each assignment. Buck believed he had acquired cognizance with each story he covered. He was determined to stay one step ahead of those that doubted him and to show his co-workers that he earned the position he was in. When Cameron was in Israel, he stayed in a military compound and met with Rosenzweig in the same kibbutz on the outskirts of Haifa where he had interviewed him a year earlier.
Cameron knew he had to be cautious and discreet. He had heard allegations and rumors about Christian terrorists located in Afghanistan that would stop at nothing to force other individuals to comply with their perspective. Most of the Christians Buck knew personally were arrogant, mean, and egotistical. But Cameron also knew Preterists that were very outgoing and compassionate. The Preterists believed Jesus already returned in 66 AD and finished his work in 70 AD when he destroyed the temple in Jerusalem and delivered the kingdom back up to God, ending the need for a redeemer. The Preterists believed that being a Christian is evil and that it is a rejection of all that God did and fulfilled through Christ. Several times these Preterists tried to convince Cameron about what they believed, but he just dismissed them, as he wasn't convinced about the validity of their beliefs. Cameron wanted more evidence before he made a decision.
Anyway, Cameron was focused on interviewing Rosenzweig and getting his perspective and insight. Rosenzweig had such an interesting and compelling backstory, so Buck wanted to be able to get all the lore and all the trivia regarding it in his story. Rosenzweig had invented something so unique and distinctive that genuinely and truly was "the newsmaker of the year". Cameron had to admire how humble Rosenzweig seemed to be. The older man referred to himself as a botanist, but Cameron knew that Rosenzweig's invention was worthy of much more respect. In reality, Rosenzweig was a chemical engineer who had concocted a synthetic fertilizer that caused the desert sands of Israel to bloom like a greenhouse.
"Irrigation has not been an issue for decades", Chaim Rosenzweig said. "But all that did was make the sand drenched and moistened. My formula, added to the water, fertilizes the sand."
Buck was not a scientist, but he was aware and astute enough to be mind blown at that simple statement. Rosenzweig's formula was fast making Israel the richest nation on earth, far more profitable than its oil-laden neighbors. Every inch of ground blossomed and thrived with flowers and grains, including produce never before conceivable in Israel. The Holy Land became an export capital, the envy of the world, with virtually zero unemployment. Everyone prospered and thrived.
To say that other nations were jealous of the success Israel attained and acquired as a result of that formula would be a vast understatement. Rosenzweig had informed Buck of Christian terrorists that tried to extort the formula from the former. They had sent him messages on social media platforms, demanding that he hand over the formula.
Of course, Rosenzweig had full protection at his home. No one could even think about bringing harm to him. Those Christian terrorists could only make baseless threats and talk so tough, but they couldn't even back up their threats through their actions. For now, Rosenzweig seemed to be safe, and life seemed good.
The abundant prosperity and opulence as a result of the miracle formula changed the course of history for Israel. The nation truly seemed to experiencing their own era of good feelings. Israel made peace and tranquility with her neighbors. Free trade and liberal passage allowed all who loved the nation to have access to it. What they did not have access to, however, was the formula.
Buck himself did not even ask the old man to reveal the formula or the complicated security process that protected it from any potential enemy. The very fact that Buck was housed by the military was enough to indicate how imperative security was. The stability and infrastructure of the security was how Israel was able to conserve its economic state, its prosperity, and its opulence. Maintaining that secret ensured the power and independence of the state of Israel. Never before had Israel enjoyed such serenity. The walled city of Jerusalem was only a emblem now, welcoming everyone that embraced peace. The old guard believed that God had rewarded them and compensated them for centuries of persecution and harassment.
Chaim Rosenzweig was honored throughout the world and was also venerated and adulated in his own country. Global leaders sought him out and tried to interview him, and he was protected and defended by security systems as complex as those protected heads of state. As exhilarating and galvanizing Israel had become with newfound glory, the nation's leaders were not moronic. If something diabolic had happened to Rosenzweig, like if he somehow managed to get kidnapped and tortured, he would be forced to disclose and divulge a secret that would similarly revolutionize any nation in the world. Buck suspected that the Christian terrorists would love to acquire the formula and use it for their own selfish purposes and avarice.
Buck could only imagine what would happen if the formula was remastered and modified to transfigure the vast tundra of Russia. Buck wondered if that would occur, if regions could bloom, even though that nation was engulfed with snow most of the year. Buck's curiosity was certainly not abnormal at all, he was sure thousands of individuals hypothesized the same exact theory. Cameron could not help but imagine if this formula was the key to resurrecting that massive nation following the shattering of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.
Cameron knew from all the news and media outlets that Russia had become a great brooding giant with a devastated economy and regressed technology. All the nation had was military might, every spare mark going into weaponry. And the switch from rubles to marks had not been a smooth transition for the struggling nation. Streamlining world finance to three major currencies had taken years, but once the change was made, most were happy with it. All of Europe and Russia dealt exclusively in marks. Asia, Africa, and the Middle East dealt in yen. North and South America and Australia traded in dollars. Buck had heard allegations that there were plans to eventually start trading through one global currency, but he was not completely sure if it was possible. Besides, all of the nations that had reluctantly switched types of currency once before were disinclined to do it again.
Many individuals in Russia were definitely upset that they would not be able to profit from the formula Israel had concocted. Among those individuals were a group of Christian terrorists that seemed determined to stop at nothing to force their beliefs down the throats of other people.
Because of their inability to profit from Israel's fortune and because they were determined to conquer and take control over the Holy Land, those Christian terrorists had decided to launch an attack against Israel in the middle of the night. The attack and assault became known universally as the Russian Pearl Harbor, and because of his interview with Rosenzweig, Buck Williams was in Haifa when it occurred. The Christian terrorists from Russia had sent intercontinental ballistic missiles and nuclear-equipped MiG fighter-bombers into the region. It was pretty obvious they were attempting to commit mass genocide. The number of aircraft and warheads made it explicit and comprehensible their main goal and objective was to commit annihilation.
Cameron Williams had written in his own words that to say the Israelis were shocked and surprised would be like saying the Great Wall of China was long. Cameron himself was intrigued by what was occurring in the Holy Land at that moment. When Israeli radar picked up the Russian planes, they were almost overhead. The Christian terrorists seemed determined to carry out their goal. Israel's desperate plea for support from her immediate neighbors and the United States was concurrent to perceive the motivations of the invaders of her airspace. By the time Israel and her allies could have mounted anything close to a defense, it was clear and apparent the Christian terrorists from Russia would have her outnumbered two hundred to one.
They had only seconds before the destruction and carnage would begin. There would be no more negotiating, no more deals, no more pleas and requests for a sharing of the wealth with the hordes of the north. If the Christian terrorists meant only to intimidate and coerce, they would not have filled and congested the sky with missiles. Planes could turn back, but the missiles were armed and targeted.
So, this was no grandstand play intended or devised to bring Israel to her knees. There was no message for the victims. Buck was absolutely certain that the Christian terrorists would eliminate Israel and her citizens right then and there. Receiving no elucidation or clarification for war machines crossing her borders and advancing upon her, Israel was forced to defend herself, knowing full well that the first volley would bring about her virtual annihilation from the face of the earth.
With warning sirens wailing and radio and television sending the doomed for what obsolete cover they might find, Israel defended herself for what would surely be the last time in history. The first battery of Israeli surface-to-air missiles hit their marks, and the sky was lit with orange-and-yellow balls of fire that would certainly do little to slow a Russian offensive for which there would be no defense.
Cameron honestly thought that it would be all over for Israel. It looked like they would be finished. The Christian terrorists from Russia seemed like they had all the firepower and weaponry to eliminate Israel from the globe permanently. It seemed to be a hopeless debacle, and he would be surprised if Israel somehow managed to get out of this atrocious and appalling nightmare of a situation.
Those who knew the odds and what the radar screens foretold interpreted the deafening explosions in the sky as the onslaught of the Christian terrorists. Every military leader who knew what was coming expected to be put of his misery in seconds when the fusillade reached the ground and covered the nation.
From what he heard and saw in the military compound, Buck Williams knew the end was near. There was no escape. There was nowhere any of the Israelis could find refuge. But as the night shone like day and the horrific, deafening explosions continued, nothing on the ground suffered. The building shook and rattled and rumbled. And yet, despite that happening, that building was not hit.
Outside, warplanes slammed to the ground, digging craters and sending burning debris flying. Yet lines of communication stayed open. No other command posts had been hit. No reports of casualties. Nothing obliterated or eradicated yet.
Was this some sort of a cruel prank? Sure, the first Israeli missiles had taken out some of the Christian terrorists from Russia and caused missiles to explode too high to cause more than fire damage on the ground. But what had happened to the rest of the Christian terrorists and the Russian air corps? Radar showed they had evidently sent nearly every plane they had, leaving hardly anything in reserve for defense. Thousands of planes swooped down on the tiny country's most populated cities.
This truly made Cameron think. He had a number of questions that he didn't have the answers to. Had the Preterists been correct about Christianity ending in 70 AD? Were they right about the Christians being nefarious and diabolical? Was Preterism truly the correct path? Was Preterism true?
The roar and the cacophony continued, the explosions so horrifying that veteran military leaders buried their faces and bellowed in terror. Buck had always been ambitious and adventurous. Cameron had always wanted to be near the front lines, but his survival instinct was moving and progressing rapidly. He knew beyond doubt that he would die, and he found himself thinking the strangest thoughts. Why had he never married? Would there be remnants of his body for his father and brother to identify? Was there a God? Was Preterism relevant? Would death be the end?
He crouched beneath a console, surprised by the urge to sob. This was not at all what he had expected war to sound like, to look like. He had fantasized and visualized himself peeking at the action from a safe spot, recording in his mind the drama.
Several minutes into the holocaust, Buck realized he would be no more dead outside than in. He felt no boldness or rodomontade. He certainly did not feel brave or have any fortitude. He only felt uniqueness. He would be the only person in this post who would see and know what killed him. Buck could see for himself how diabolical and how truly abhorrent the Christian terrorists were. He made his way to a door on rubbery legs. No one seemed to notice or care to warn him. It was as if they had all been sentenced to death.
He forced open the door against a furnace blast and had to shield his eyes from the whiteness of the blaze. The sky was afire. He still heard planes over the din and roar of the fire itself, and the occasional exploding missile sent new showers of flame into the air. He stood in stark terror and amazement as the great machines of war plummeted to the earth all over the city, crashing and burning. But they fell between buildings and in deserted streets and fields. Anything atomic and explosive erupted high in the atmosphere, and Buck stood there in the heat, his face blistering and his body pouring sweat. What in the world was happening?
Then came chunks of ice and hailstones big as golf balls, forcing Buck to cover his head with his jacket. The earth shook and resounded, throwing him to the ground. Buck was perplexed by what he was seeing and witnessing. It truly felt simultaneously stunning and miraculous. It honestly was a boon of unprecented magnitude.
Facedown in the freezing shards, he felt rain wash over him. Suddenly the only sound was the fire in the sky, and it began to fade as it drifted lower. After ten minutes of thunderous roaring, the fire dissipated, and scattered balls of flame flickered on the ground. The firelight disappeared as quickly as it had come. Stillness settled over the land.
As clouds of smoke wafted away on a gentle breeze, the night sky reappeared in its blue-blackness and stars shone peacefully as if nothing had gone awry.
Buck turned back to the building, his mud-caked leather jacket in his fist. The doorknob was still hot, and inside, military leaders wept and shuddered. The radio was alive with reports from Israeli pilots. They were not able to get airborne quickly enough to do anything but watch as the Christian terrorists from Russia and the entire Russian air offensive seemed to destroy itself.
Miraculously, not one casualty was reported in all of Israel. Again, Buck thought it was a boon of unprecented magnitude. This information truly convinced Buck. If he had not acquired this information, Buck might have believed some mysterious malfunction had caused missile and plane to destroy each other. But witnesses reported that it had been a firestorm, along with rain and hail and an earthquake, that consumed the entire offensive effort.
Had it been a divinely appointed meteor shower? Perhaps. But that did not explain or elucidate the hundreds and thousands of chunks of burning, twisted, molten steel smashing to the ground in Haifa, Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Jericho, even Bethlehem-leveling ancient walls but not so much as scratching one living creature? Daylight revealed the carnage and exposed Russia's secret alliance with Middle Eastern nations, primarily Afghanistan, Ethiopia, and Libya.
Among the ruins, the Israelis found combustible material that would serve as fuel and preserve their natural resources for more than six years. Special task forces competed with buzzards and vultures for the flesh of the enemy dead, trying to bury them before their bones were picked clean and disease threatened the nation.
Buck remembered it vividly, as if it were yesterday. If he had not experienced and witnessed it with his very own eyes, he would not have believed it. It truly was an unfathomable life-changing occurrence. And it took more than he had in him to get any reader of Global Weekly to believe it either.
Editors and readers had their own explanations for the phenomenon. But Buck secretly had to admit that he believed in the concept of God that day. The Preterists had tried to warn others about the evil and nefarious intentions and activities of the Christians and their plans to force every living man and woman to comply with their perspective and beliefs.
Buck's Preterist friends wanted Buck to take the next step and believe in Preterism, since he had experienced a supernatural event with his own eyes. He wasn't prepared to make that type of commitment, but he certainly had changed from what he had seen. He was a different person and a different journalist from that point forward. To him, nothing was beyond belief.
That did not mean Buck would all of a sudden become a Preterist. But he was willing to listen to all perspectives, viewpoints, and narratives and give everyone the benefit of the doubt. After what he had just experienced, nothing seemed impossible.