Dragon Astronomer (eBook)

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Day 1

Jonathan lay in bed thinking of the previous night; his memories were incomplete, and he was frustrated not knowing what was missing. Finally, he rolled over and looked out the window.

The upper part of Taobh Thoir Mountain was barely visible behind daybreak’s blanket of blue-gray haze. Although the night ruled the dark, its strength waned with the power of the coming morning.

Throwing covers aside, Jonathan sat on the bed’s edge, arms resting on his legs as he reviewed the previous evening again. Some events were transparent, except between the visitor leaving and him sitting on the floor. Jonathan stood and paced the bedroom.

We spoke for several minutes. The woman said her name was Asherah. She warned of a war that would affect Galasi and Earth. I wanted more information, but I’m unsure if she answered. However, there was something about signs and sending me on a trip. Amnadh!

Jonathan finally gave up trying to remember and headed for a hot, soaking shower. Since he was free from meetings for the day, he grabbed jeans and a t-shirt, then headed to what his brothers called the celestial tower.

Walking into the workroom/office, Jonathan saw his assistant at her computer. “Good morning, Charlie.”

Grinning, she looked, “Good morning, Jonathan. There’s fresh coffee.”

With a mug full of coffee, he was ready to start the day. Jonathan took a careful sip of the hot brew. “Thanks, Charlie, it’s perfect.”

Remembering the new software, they were expecting, he asked, “Did the new software arrive?”

“It’s due before lunch. If it works like the promo promised, we should get great details of the S0-B453’s elements.”

Jonathan leaned against the cabinet, crossed his ankles, and eyeballed the workroom office while enjoying the coffee. To his right, between the door and the corner, were filing cabinets and open cube storage units along the wall.

“Jonathan, I’m going to check with the AIs for updates.”

“Okay, I’ll be here this morning; text if you need me after lunch.”

Jonathan refilled his cup and leaned against the cabinet, lost in thought. Then an abrupt thud broke into his musings. Looking up, he saw a tall young man walk into the room with nearly black hair and features reminiscent of what he saw that morning in the mirror.

“Hey, are you okay? You look startled,” Garth said as he came around the door.

Turning back to the cabinet, Jonathan retrieved a second mug and poured another coffee. “I’m fine, just lost in thought.”

Garth accepted the mug Jonathan held out.

“Thanks. Did you have a good evening?”

Jonathan’s mouth formed a quirky grin as he said, “Interesting, but a part is fuzzy.”

Grinning, Garth asked, “Really? Any pretty girls?”

Jonathan shook his head. “I think I was walking in the universe. But not like walking in a park.”

“Truly?”

“All-in-all, the evening was average; dinner, read Jace’s report, and I remember thinking that you should read the information he supplied. I know you already use drones in a limited way. Jace addressed using satellites to send data, including videos, directly to your data centers.” Jonathan then led Garth to his desk with a tip of his head, “Have a seat and tell me about your morning over our coffee.”

Garth sat in the standard vinyl and chrome chair, “That’s it? What about the heavenly walk you took?”

“I’ve tried to clear the fog. I remember wanting to explore specific areas but ended up elsewhere. It felt like being a pawn; someone was controlling me. There’s nothing to share; however, I believe something important will happen soon.”

With a voice thick, Garth said, “Jonathan, I think what you’re not saying promises appalling consequences.”

Jonathan looked at his brother, puzzled, “Why do you say that?”

“I don’t know. With my strange morning, your walk among the stars, and something that occurred last night you can’t remember, which is not like you. Maybe it’s some sixth sense.”

Jonathan ran his fingers through his hair. “My gut feeling says something is wrong, but I don’t know how serious. However, I feel we’ll know sooner rather than later.”

Realizing Garth was in the tower, he asked, “Is there a problem? You rarely visit up here.”

Garth, willing to change the subject, leaned forward with a broad grin. “My morning started out strangely.”

“You had a dream?” Jonathan sipped the last of his coffee.

“No, not a dream. A voice insisted I go to the archives to find something.”

Jonathan’s eyes lifted as if to say, “Okay, I’ll bite.” He stood to get a refill and lifted his mug in the silent question, ‘Want a refresher?’

“I didn’t recognize the voice, so I ignored it,” Garth said as he handed over his mug. “That didn’t work. It continued to nag, and I ducked my head under the pillow. I thought the voice would leave until the pillow was yanked off my head and hit the wall. However, the voice was quiet after the pillow hit the wall.”

As Jonathan handed his brother the refilled mug, he said. “You keep saying ‘voice’; you didn’t look to see who was talking?”

“He was out of view when I cracked my eye open. And, before you ask, I know the difference between a man’s and a woman’s voice.”

Returning to his chair, Jonathan gave a half-suppressed chuckle and raised his hands in surrender.

Garth took a sip, “Hold on; it gets weirder. This morning’s peculiar part happened while in the archive vault.”

Surprised, Jonathan asked, “You heeded the voice and headed to the vault?”

“My curiosity got the better of me, so, yes, I headed to the vault. Okay, I was afraid the voice would start pulling my ears or hair, so I gave in. However, I didn’t know what to do when I got there and wondered why I was there. Then, after a few minutes, I got tired of milling around, so I turned down a side aisle and headed for the door when someone spoke. Yea, I know that’s not strange, except the vault was empty.”

Jonathan’s eyes crinkled at the corner. “What …”

Garth could see his brother tried not to laugh, so he held up a hand to stop his question.

“You think that’s funny? Just wait; it gets better. The voice was directly in front of me, but I saw nothing. However, taking a step forward, my foot collided with something. At the toe of my boot, a foot materialized as I watched. Next, I watched the rest of the person become solid. There on hands and knees, an Elder searched the floor. Well, mostly there.”

Jonathan laughed, “What do you mean, ‘mostly there’?”

“Well, you’ve seen what the women call sheer curtains, right?”

“Yes.”

“There was not much to the Elder; he looked like a sheer curtain. However, he did get a little more substantial so he could pick up what was on the floor. He looked at me and said, ‘Heard me, did you? You weren’t supposed to see me. Just follow my directions. Which you refused to do.’ I nearly landed next to him. Once my jaw was closed, I asked him who he was and how he got there.”

Jonathan laughed, nearly spewing coffee over his desk.

“Ya, go ahead and laugh. You will find this even funnier; the Elder said he was our great-great-great-great-etcetera grandfather, Artur. He handed me this,” Garth said and sat an ancient-looking rolled document on the desk, “and Granddaddy Artur said, ‘Give this to Jonathan.’”

Jonathan looked questioningly at the item. Finally, he moved the scroll forward using its wooden handle. “What is this?”

“Our great-etc., etc., etc., grand pops said something about ‘Asherah’s Prophecy,’ and it should help you understand.”

Jonathan inquired, “Have you checked this out? The scroll looks ancient, although we’ll need to test it.”

“No. I thought you deserved the privilege of the first look.”

Still wrapped in its protective parchment sleeve, the scroll sat atop the map cabinet, waiting to be read — neither moved. Instead, the brothers stood there and stared at the scroll.

Garth said, “Do you think it’s recordings of business transactions or a prediction?”

Jonathan’s smile of anticipation faded. “I wonder why the scroll was brought to us.”

Rubbing an eyebrow, Garth said, “Let’s hope it’s different from the tales about old prophecies from ancient times.”

“I don’t believe it’s business transactions,” Jonathan said.

“Why do you say that?”

“The timing. There seems to be an urgency to find the scroll today. You were told to go to the archive vault this morning. When you did go, you saw a ghostlike image of an ancestor looking for a scroll he dropped. Your tale has helped, and I remember more about last night.”

“What do you remember?”

“A beautiful stranger abruptly showed up in my office. She mentioned war and that I should read the Prophecy.

“A strange woman appeared in your apartment?” Garth’s mouth agape with astonishment, “and War was mentioned?”

“Yes, to both. Did I believe the woman? At first, no. Then later, I didn’t know what to think.”