“You all see what the weather is like. I do not know how it happened, but it did. Team, you know your skills, but first we need to pray”, I explained to everybody gravely. We did not bother holding hands, as the vessel began to sway more violently. I said a quick prayer asking the Lord to help us. As soon as I said amen, a giant wave smashed up against the side of the boat. We could all here the metal gong from the knocking of the wave. It shook everybody like an earthquake. As everyone stumbled, I was the only to grab hold of something. I turned my head to look out of the window. The Sky looked dark as night from the clouds and the clouds looked grey to point of almost being black. Another wave hit the boat and this time the shaking through me across the room. After crawling towards the radio, I pulled myself up by the wheel. As I went to signal for help lightning struck the antenna knocking out all electricity and communications. “I’ll go out and fix the antenna”, yelled persistence as she was staggering towards the door. “Persistence, don’t you dare open that door. Going out there would be suicide”, I yelled quickly and forcefully. Persistence stopped dead in her tracks and immediately let go of the door handle. I looked around the room to make sure that the team was alright and accounted for. “The same goes for everyone else. I don’t want anyone going outside. That is an order”, I commanded. A few seconds later, a strong gust of wind violently blew out all the windows in the cockpit throwing glass everywhere and leaving it all over the floor. The force of the wind blew Persistence into the wall knocking her unconscious. Heather was now holding on to the same bar that I was holding onto from before. Paul crawled over towards Persistence to check on her while Shaltu was in the corner holding Duke. I looked towards Heather first to see if was still in one piece. Then I called out to Paul. “Is she alright? How is she”, I asked? He put his two fingers to her neck and checked her pulse. “She’s still breathing he called back. I then looked over to Heather, my future wife. She looked back towards me. “Alright Heather, on the count of two I am going to need you to crawl to me. One, Two, Go”, I yelled as she crawled toward me by the radio. We held on to each other as tight as we could. And just like that, the boat split in half as it became sucked under water. The waves were like no other. It was amazing. Had there been any signs of a storm we would have postponed the expedition. Where had this cyclone come from? It had to have broken record winds, and yet as the water had pulled us all under together we were still alive. The current pulled us deeper and deeper. My eyes were closed until I felt a hand grab my own. I looked to my right and saw Heather. As I surveyed the surrounding water, I notice Persistence, Paul, Shaltu, and even Duke all close by. With the storm going it was impossible to see anything else. Our boat, ‘The Firmament’, was pulled down like a brick. It was out of sight. We must have been five hundred feet from the surface. However, I still felt Heather’s hand, and could still spot the rest of the team being taken underneath the ocean with me. We all must have been under water for about ten minutes, and yet miraculously we were all still able to breath. It was then that a long piece of seaweed had wrapped around each of us keeping us all together, right before we had all blacked out. It was as if I were asleep. As my eyes shut tight, there was a dead silence. And I heard in my dream a deep loud voice.
“Howard, you are a true leader. When I am done talking, I will send a fish to save you and your friends. I will also send my son to so that he may be by your side and give you wisdom, and last of all, I will give you a new kind of spirit - one that will lead you to do more good than ever”, he explained.
I was nervous of course. Anyone else who would have heard what I had heard would have probably thought that they were crazy. However, I did believe in the Lord. It was not often that somebody would have a dream the way I did. It was also not often that other’s boats were sucked into the ocean. Most people would have kept silent or would not have been able to speak, but I could not help myself from opening my mouth. “I am guessing that it is you talking Lord. Can you tell me when all of this will take place”, I asked quietly as I took a big gulp. There was a five second quietness. At first it seemed as if he were upset. Then I heard a response. “No”, said the deep voice plainly. I was a bit surprised. Not only I was truly expecting an answer but I was also somewhat excited that I would be getting one. “Nevertheless, I will tell you this. When I send the fish to save you will be in its stomach for seventy-two hours. Neither you, your team, nor the fish will be harmed. You will be the first to awaken. After seventy-two hours it will spit you up on beautiful land. I must warn you Howard, for you will not be going up against only flesh and blood, but also against cosmic powers over present darkness and against the spiritual forces of evil in the air. Be careful for your enemies will out way your friends. Be vigilant for the enemy will go around like a lion looking for prey. They will also be cunning, and if they see anyone who is weak, they will strike fast like a snake. Remember the spirit will be your guide. Also, I know that you want to marry Heather. I will allow you to so long as you keep the hair on your face and chin shaved”, The Lord explained. I again became nervous, although I took comfort in the fact in knowing that I would have my own personal guide. Also, hearing someone else call me a leader gave me a big boost of confidence, especially seeing how it came from the biggest leader of all. However, I quickly realized something. “Lord, under normal circumstances, I have never had a problem leading my team, but these are not normal circumstances. What if they don’t listen to me”, I asked. I started to become apprehensive again. It was true. These certainly were not normal circumstances. How many leaders in history had ever had to tell their crew they were swallowed by a giant fish? “Speak boldly and with authority. Like anyone, they will be in doubt and try to make sense of the situation, but only for a short while. They will listen”, explained the Lord. I looked down at my watch. I must have been dreaming for an hour now. It was incredible. Neither my team nor I had any scuba-gear or any oxygen for that matter. None of us had our goggles when we went under. I had soon woken up from my dream only to find that I was slowly sinking. As I looked around, my team was close to me unconscious. What had happened while I was dreaming? Why did the Firmament sink? We were not supposed to see any storm. Everything around me was dark with five shining green lights. There was no idea where we were sinking to. And then a Giant fish, like whale creature slowly came and swallowed all of them one by one.
The Giant fish, like whale creature, began to swim off with each, team member in its stomach. As I shook my head, everyone else was still lying on the grown. I examined my environment. Never have I ever before been eaten by a fish let alone a giant fish. I did not know what to do. Everybody began to pick up their head, and wake up. They moan, and groaned. As the team had came about, they had began to smell a foul odor. It was the fish’s stomach. Some kind of gas unlike anything I have ever heard of, seen, or smelled, before that helped us breathe plus the undigested food and salt water made a horrible combination. After being in the navy for seven years, I had been all over the globe and explored places that were unheard of and never have I seen a gas like the one was looking at. Rather than creating a fire in the dark stomach, the gas was glowing throughout the whole fish. We could see every bone in its body. It was still trying to take everything in. Where we were was about the size of a hotel suite. How could it be. By now, I was fully aware of what was going on while my team was still trying to stand up. “Where … Where are we”, asked Persistence as she was bent over and rubbing her head. She stood up and began to look around and sniff the air. “What is that stench”, she said with a smug look on her face. By now everyone was to their feet. I was not sure exactly how to explain the situation that we were in, so I just came out and said what happened. “There is only one way to say this. We are in a fish, and that stench you are smelling is it’s insides. I know this sounds crazy, but we were swallowed about two hours ago. We will be in here for three whole days”, I explained. Everybody began talking at once in disbelief. Shaltu had slowly stepped forward. “What are you getting at Howard? Are you telling us that we have been under the ocean without any air for two hours? Maybe our great leader should lie down before he falls apart”, Shaltu said in an uneasy tone. We all knew that Shaltu was always different. He was often quiet in his own way, but no one, especially me ever thought that he would want to challenge me which was exactly what he was doing. Before he could get within reaching distance to me, Paul intervened by stepping in the middle. “Come on guys. We are on the same team. Look, where ever we are, the only way we are going to get out of this situation is by working together”, Paul said. It was good that Paul came between the two of us. To be honest, Shaltu was quicker than me and could probably beat me in a fight with his eyes closed. “Thank you Paul. I appreciate that, and as right as you are about working together, I am telling you the truth. We are in the stomach of a giant fish”, I tried to explain. I would be lying if I said that I did not feel silly by talking. Every word that came out of my mouth sounded even crazier than the last. Nevertheless, I remembered what the Lord said. ‘Speak boldly. At first they will doubt, but they will quickly listen’. Then a voice had spoken from the back of the fish. “Howard, please listen to yourself. You are saying that we are going to be in a fish’s stomach for three days like the story of Jonah. That is insane”, said Heather concerned wondering if I was in my right mind. The whole team including Duke was looking at me to hear what my response would be. Without knowing I suddenly stood up straight began to speak louder. “Is it really”, I said in a strong voice. Everyone turned silent. They were all still, with their heads fixated on me. “Is it more insane than seeing a deadly cyclone appear out of nowhere in a matter of seconds when there should not have been any rain? Is it more insane than having our entire ship getting split in half and sucked under? If you know where we are than you tell me. But we are in a dire situation and we are where we are. No one can change that. So lets just take a ten minute time out, and see if we are alright. Remember, we are a team”, I said straightforward. After we all calmed down and regrouped, it was as if we became best friends again. While we all were in the belly of the sea creature, each member of the team partnered up with someone. There was no reason for it in particular. It just happened. Shaltu was spending time with Persistence while Paul was sitting down with Duke. As I was sitting by myself trying to think about something else other then how my entire team was still alive in the stomach of a giant fish, Heather walked up toward me. My head was facing down with a worried look on my face. “If we get out of this thing alive, do you think anyone would believe us”, Heather said, getting my attention. My head had shot up. She had sat in front of me. At that moment it seemed hard to talk to her. After all she was the woman I plan on marrying, and even she thought I sounded crazy. Nevertheless, I gave her a serious look and hoped that she would believe me. “I told you Heather, we’re inside the stomach of a fish”, I answered calmly trying to convince her. The expression on her face seemed disappointed. It was as if she wanted to hear a different answer. I noticed her look of distress. “Heather, please understand, I have been a commander in the Navy for seven years, and you all have known me for five. Never once have I misguided you”, I said referring to the team. Heather had thought about it, but had decided to change the subject. “Well, either way, I am pretty sure Paul believes you”, she said as she moved her head in Paul’s direction. I to looked towards Paul. He was sitting by Duke and scratching his neck. “What makes you say that”, I said with a small laugh. Paul was all alone. He was the only person who did not seem worried. Maybe it was because he was the oldest, and people tend to be more peaceful as they age. Either way Heather answered, “He’s the only one not talking to anybody”. Shaltu was conversing with Persistence. He also thought the sound of being in a fish sounded foolish, and he was hoping Persistence would agree with him. Thankfully persistence was much too loyal. “We are stuck … That is crazy. Don’t you think”, Shaltu whispered, as he leaned over to Persistence. Persistence held her nose and rolled her eyes. She was ignoring him. “What is that smell”, she interrupted, referring to the gas in the fish’s stomach. She was staring at Paul and Duke. I could tell that she wanted to go towards the two. Shaltu kept talking. I suppose Persistence became tired of Shaltu. “Shaltu, I am going to go over there to see how Paul is doing”, Persistence said. Shaltu had started to grow a dangerous hatred and resentment towards me. He tried to keep it secret from everyone, but it was obvious to me. He did not seem the same as he usually did. It was understandable to become anxious. We had all been in a dark and dingy place with a horrible disgusting smell. Not only that, none of us had nearly eaten in nearly three days. Nevertheless, none was behaving the way Shaltu was. It was only a few hours later that the belly of the fish began to give a violent shake. The only other time I could recall such a shake was right before our ship went under. There was a loud echoing groan, as everyone was thrown all over the insides of the sea creature. No one but I knew what was happening. After seventy-two hours, I was hoping to see what our enormous friend looked like when it spit us up on to dry land. Unfortunately, a hit on the head prevented me from that. I woke up moments later on a beautiful white sandy beach with my team knocked-out next to me. I had been on many beaches before, and the one we were on was nothing like the others. It was clear that we now on another uncharted island of what seemed to be another world. The whole team and I were most likely on the verge of starvation from being stuck inside the dark for three days so I decided to go up to the trees and pick some fruit.