Tomorrow is the day that Thorolf’s firestorm sparks in Serpent’s Kiss. There will be a total lunar eclipse tomorrow, visible from the Americas, with the last bit of it visible from eastern Australia. Since it’s beginning at 07:06 Greenwich Mean Time and ending at 08:24 GMT (total eclipse at 07:46 GMT) I’m telling you about it today. In North America, the eclipse will occur in the wee hours of tomorrow morning – I’d need to get up at 1 AM to see it. If you’re further west, you might be able to just stay up late.

This is a pretty interesting eclipse, which makes it a good choice for Thorolf’s firestorm. It will be a Blood Moon, which means that the moon will appear to be russet or red when the shadow of the earth crosses it. It’s also happening at almost the same time as a Cardinal Grand Cross.

A Grand Cross (or Grand Square) is unusual astrologically and generally a sign of great tension. In this particular case, there will be more tension than usual, given the planets involved. During the week of April 20, Mars will square both Jupiter and Pluto. (That means they’ll be at 90 degree angles to each other.) Jupiter will square Uranus at the same time, while Uranus and Pluto have been squared to each other since 2012. (They move more slowly, so the relationships last longer.) In this configuration, Mars is opposed to Uranus and Jupiter is opposed (or opposite to) Pluto. That makes our square or cross.

In this particular instance, all four planets involved are cardinal (rather than fixed or mutable), which ups the ante. It’s upped again because Mars, Pluto and Uranus are all planets that can herald abrupt or violent changes, and Jupiter tends to amplify whatever else is going on. It’s no wonder that some astrologers are expecting cataclysmic events this month. On a personal level, anyone who is strongly influenced by any or all of these planets in their personal astrological chart will feel stressed and challenged. It’s a time for these people to be tested, to be conflicted, and – with any luck – to move beyond those challenges to a new and better state of being.

So above, so below, as the saying goes. There are cataclysmic events in Thorolf’s book, triggered by both his firestorm and by the changes already in progress in the world. You have to also expect that most of the Pyr would be strongly influenced by the planet of Mars, a male planet associated with war, power and those who fight. Thorolf must have a good chunk of Mars in his chart, because he’s severely tested during his firestorm.

You might not see any dragons over the next few days (even if you are in Bangkok), but if we have a clear night and you set your alarm, you might see the Blood Moon of the eclipse.

This is also the first of four lunar eclipses that terminate the Dragon’s Tail – which is the period of karmic re-balance that sets off the Dragon’s Tail wars in Dragonfire. The whole cycle of the moon’s node will be completed in September 2015. If you’re curious about these astrological events and the significance people have attributed to them, take a peek at this article.