Four Moons

Back at the yacht...

The chef cooked a simple meal of stewed chicken and rice. The passengers ate on the lowest deck, while those guarding the boat ate at their posts.

After the meal, everyone returned to the upper deck to discuss the plans for the next few days.

Alec was the first to arrive at the sun deck.

"Holy cow! What is that?" Alec cried out loud.

Leoric emerged from the stairway and followed Alec. Emily followed behind him while Doctor Reeves and Angel, who trailed behind, were the last to arrive at the sun deck.

Everybody looked at the sky with grim expressions. The sun had already set. They just had an hour of dinner, and when they came back, the night sky was as bright as a cloudy day.

"What are those?" another guest asked.

Captain Niel took the telescope and examined the four objects positioned strategically on the cardinal points: north, south, east, and west.

"I suppose those are satellites that were secretly launched recently. They could not be the moon. We only have one moon, and today should just be a crescent moon," Captain Niel said while checking out the four golden orbs hanging in the four directions in the sky.

Mario Diaz, the boatswain, chuckled as he shook his head. "You, people still don't get it. This place is not the earth anymore."

Doctor Reeves glared at Mario. 'Does he has to say it blatantly?'

Leoric took the telescope from the captain and studied the sky. Indeed, those do not look like satellites but resemble a moon. He sighed deeply and contemplated. 'Could they be in a different world? Were they sucked into a vortex and space-traveled? But where is this place?' Leoric handed the telescope back to the captain in a calm manner. He did not show the panic that he had started to feel.

"Do you think that we could no longer be on earth and were sucked into a vortex and transported into another world?" Alec voiced out what Leoric decided to keep to himself. He frowned deeply and asked the most sensible question.

"What bullshit are you saying, Alec? You are the co-owner of this yacht; shouldn't you choose words that would not cause the passengers to panic." Emily lashed out at Alec. How could he say such irresponsible words?

"I apologize, Em. I was out of line and caused you panic," Alec said politely.

"I can't believe that a person as educated as you would ask such a stupid question," she mumbled. She didn't continue to berate Alec. Like the rest, she stood there, staring blankly at the sky.

Angel strolled to the edge of the sun deck and looked up at the moon to the west, mesmerized. 

Leoric followed the graceful figure with his gaze. Her white sundress swayed as she moved, even when there was no breeze.

Doctor Reeves and Mario Diaz walked to the railing and stood beside Angel. Leoric narrowed his eyes dangerously. His feet subconsciously moved in their direction, and he squeezed between Angel and Mario.

"Do you also think that we are no longer on Earth?"

"Do you think that this place is no longer Earth?"

Doctor Reeves and Mario Diaz both looked at Angel and asked her at the same time."

Angel did not answer but continued to look at the moon. It seemed very familiar. It was the largest of the four, with a hazy orange glow surrounding it.

"Isn't it beautiful? I thought I had seen it somewhere." Angel said dreamily.

"It looked like one of the moons of Jupiter, Io," Leoric interjected.

Angel's mind was filled with a memory that seemed to be from a long time ago.

'That moon is called Mayari. Every four months, it appears in the western sky at its fullest with a beautiful orange glow like the sunset.' A six-year-old boy lay beside a three-year-old girl on a grassy patch atop a mountain.

'Brother Nayou, I thought that Mayari was the daughter of Bathala and the goddess of war,' the little girl asked innocently.

'Our little Tala is so smart. Yes, because the moon is very beautiful, it was named after the most beautiful daughter of Bathala.' The young boy said as he ruffled the girl's copper-brown hair.

'How about the other three smaller ones? What are their names?'

'Those are named after Mayari's daughters. On the east is Dalag, on the north is Azul, and that one on the south is Pula.' The boy pointed to each moon as he told her the names.

Angel blinked, and the memory faded.

"It is very beautiful," Angel did not ask anymore but stated a confirmation. She wanted to say that it was called Mayari, and it became utterly round and at its brightest, every four months and stayed that way for seven days. But how would she explain how the knowledge came to her? Could she say that she had this memory? Why did the boy call the girl Tala? Was it the same person she met who jumped into the water? Why did Tala end her life after berating her for having some thoughts of ending her own? Why was she having those memories and those dreams?

Angel sighed deeply.

"We are no longer on Earth. The Earth has only one moon. The sooner we accept this reality, the earlier we can prepare for our current situation." The voice was melodious, clear, and loud.

Angel's statement struck everyone on the deck like a bucket of cold water poured over them. 

Most of them were crew members who were highly trained and familiar with all the places surrounding the South Pacific. They knew that there was no such place in the South Pacific.

"Alright. It is time for everyone to rest. Only those who are assigned to guard the boat can stay here. Tomorrow we should start our preparation. We should leave as soon as possible as those scorpions and that 'creature' might come back and attack us." Leoric's voice was more commanding than that of the captain. When he spoke, everyone tended to listen.

"Don't worry, Mr. Graystone. We should have peace in the next seven days as those scorpions will not attack us. But of course, we should leave early because, after seven days, the scorpion king will be back with a vengeance." Mario, the boatswain, said confidently.

"How do you know they will only attack after seven days?" Leoric looked at Mario suspiciously.