Wormwood E-Book

Christo Garces

• Herausgeber: Christo Garces
• Kategorie: Religion und Spiritualität
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2018

Seitenzahl: 128

Beschreibung

After an important artifact is discovered, which the world governments believe can change the course of history. Dr Michaels, a world renowned scholar of ancient literature is roped in to crack the mystery. A series of life changing events unfold which lead the powers that be into a race against time.

Will the human race triumph over this adversity, or is it the wrath of God that is being unleashed upon a sinful world.

This ebook touches every emotion intimately and allows the reader to extract biblical correlations on an emotional level.

Leseprobe

This is a work of fiction. Similarities to real people, places, or events are entirely coincidental.

WORMWOOD - THE WRATH OF GOD

First edition. June 14, 2018.

Copyright © 2018 christo garces.

ISBN: 978-0620801119

Written by christo garces.

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Table of Contents

Title Page

Copyright Page

Wormwood - The wrath of God

The Beginning

The PACKAGE

Of Kings and men

The SMITHSONIAN

Beginning of the end

Final REPORT

A PRIESTLY VISION

SOLAR ENCOUNTER

WORMWOOD

CONGREGATION OF WORLD LEADERS

jehovah revisited

the president’s report

another day in paradise

god’s fury part 1

god’s fury part 2

north ain’t far enough

alien encounter

space camp

final warning

NASA SPACE CENTRAL

ANTICHRIST

last days of paradise

INTO THE UNKNOWN

the wrath of god

the end

Contents

CHAPTER 1

The Beginning

Cape Town South Africa 05h10

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IT WAS A HOT SUMMER morning. The thick mist outside made it evident that the day would be scorching. Doctor Michaels, a highly sought after archaeologist and author of ‘The Art of Ancient Languages’ was laying in deep sleep. He seemed at peace, almost in a death like pose. The evening before was heralded as a milestone in his career, when he accepted the most prestigious award for a lifetime of sacrifice to the Smithsonian.

Doctor Michaels was a fifty-year-old veteran, unmarried with no children. On many occasions when asked would jokingly say that work satisfied his every needs and that he lacked nothing.

Pete, as he was affectionately known, was in Cape Town to promote his award-winning novel, and also to attend lectures being held at the University. He was also hoping to get as many of the sights in before returning to the states.

Suddenly, he was awoken by the sound of his mobile device ringing. Lazily, he stretched out his hand and picked up to answer.

“Pete hello?”

The voice on the other end was smooth and warming.

“Good morning, may I speak to Doctor Michaels?”

“It is he who is speaking. How may I..........”

Before Doctor Michaels could complete his sentence, the voice on the other end cut in, but this time the voice had changed to a gruff, solid and direct tone.

“Thank God, Doctor Michaels we have been trying to locate you for hours!”

“Who is this?” Pete said now fully awake and alert

“Forgive me sir, I am Doctor Wells from acquisitions at the Smithsonian”

“Ah ok. How may I help you Doctor Wells?”

“Doctor Michaels, a discovery of epic proportion has been made in Cairo. We need you to drop everything, and get over there immediately.”

“What discovery?” Pete asked with intrigue and confusion

“No time to explain now, get ready! Our people will be there in fifteen minutes to pick you up. Everything will be explained at the debriefing.”

With that the line was disconnected, and Pete was left hanging with more questions than answers. Why were they so secretive? What could be so important that they would wake him up so early and not even have the audacity to explain?

Doctor Michaels replaced the phone on the side table, sat for a moment in disbelief, and then begrudgingly got up, picked out a suit, freshened up and dressed. Just as he finished, he heard a knock at the door.

“Doctor Michaels I presume?”

“Yes and you are?”

Excuse me sir, I am Shane. My instructions are to drive you to the debriefing.”

“Shane is it? What more can you tell me about this discovery?”

“Sir, unfortunately I am just the driver.”

“Could we please make haste as we are on a strict timeline”

“Ok then ....”

Pete could fathom that nothing informative would be forthcoming from the gentleman, so he followed quietly and got into the suv parked outside.

The trip was undertaken in silence along the escarpment through many winding roads until finally the driver slowed down and turned off onto a dirt road. Pete felt a chill run down his spine as the vehicle started etching closer to what resembled an old lighthouse. Was he being kidnapped? How could he have just taken their word without contacting his direct superior to confirm? The vehicle came to an abrupt halt.

“Doctor Michaels, I am so happy to see you!” A large muscular hand extended out to him

“I am Doctor Wells, I spoke to you briefly on the phone earlier”

“Oh yes”

Pete still guarded and weary sat steadfast in the vehicle, almost waiting to be snatched up.

Other than the gruff voice, Doctor Wells was a well-proportioned individual; his face bubbly with ginger hair and freckles pasted everywhere. His demeanor made Pete feel a little at ease.

“Doctor Michaels, please can we make haste, the board members are anxiously awaiting our arrival!”

“Sir, I am not leaving this vehicle until I know what the hell is going on”

Doctor Wells smiled broadly and ebbed closer to the vehicle.

“Pete, I apologize, it seems I haven’t handled this situation very well...let me put your mind at ease”

Doctor Wells explained briefly that a huge discovery had been made and because of Pete’s extensive knowledge, he had been highly recommended to be the project lead, but due to the nature of the find, everything was to be done in secrecy until the claim was validated. He assured Pete that the professor would divulge everything.

Pete followed Doctor Wells down a narrow path until arriving at the door leading into the basement of the lighthouse. The door creaked open and as they entered, Doctor Michael’s eyes lit up as there waiting with a broad smile was Barbara Dunn, still radiant, gorgeous, older but definitely not colder. Pete immediately felt at ease.

“Pete how long has it been?”

“Barb, wow! You still look ravishing!”

Barbara just let out her signature giggle, took Pete by the hand and nudged him forward.

“We’ll chat later, but now we seriously have some pressing matters to attend to.” She could see that Pete was confused.

“Come Pete, everyone is waiting.”

The Lighthouse

––––––––

THE BASEMENT HAD BEEN converted into what looked like a mini cinema. Everyone sat down and almost immediately fell into silence. An elderly gentleman, seated in the front row, got up and approached the podium. He placed a folder down, set his spectacles on his nose, looked up at the audience for a brief moment, and then it seemed like he began to pray.

“Ladies and gentleman, thank you for making yourselves available possibly for the most important discovery of humankind. Last week while excavating an archaeological site in Cairo, we discovered a large hidden chest.”

With that, a picture of the chest appeared on the screen directly behind the professor. He continued...

“Spectral and carbon dating has put the chest roughly around the time when the universe was created, but...”

With that statement, the crowd began to chatter and raise hands to put questions to the professor, but he gestured to them to quiten down so that he could continue talking.

“Ladies and gentleman, I will give you all a chance to ask questions in due time, but right now I need everyone to quiten down and let me lay down the facts of the matter at hand.”

A great silence fell in the auditorium and the professor continued.

“It took a few days for our scientists to decipher the markings ordained on the chest, but we managed to decode the ancient texts and get the box open, and that’s where the mystery and confusion lays.”

The professor paused for a moment, as if trying to build up suspense.

“In the box, we have discovered a book, golden and sacred. It is the most exquisite piece of literature ever found, however we have been unable to decode it, except for the title, and we fear that if this is a genuine artifact, it may contain information of a most sensitive nature.”

“What is the title of the book? Exclaimed a few of the esteemed guests.

The professor, as if frightened by the question, glanced over at the director, almost waiting for approval to continue. Time slowed as the professor kept his gaze on the director, who almost immediately nodded and swooshed his hand in approval.

“Yes, as I was saying! We discovered this book in the chest.” The professor held his chin and squinted.

“The title of the book has been roughly converted from Aramaic to English as the gospel according to Jehovah, so this could possibly be a missing book of the bible, written by Jesus himself.”

First there was a moment of silence, and then the entire auditorium erupted into noise.

“Can you believe this crap?”

“Seriously, where’s the camera’s...is this a joke?”

“Lord, the professor had us going there.”

The professor waved almost uncontrollably to usher in silence.

“Esteemed colleagues, what I have told you is not done lightly, but do you understand what we may have stumbled upon, and I believe that there is only one person here who may be able to decode the book”

“Doctor Michaels, please May you join me up here at the podium.”

Pete froze for a moment and then instinctively stood up and gingerly walked down the aisle until reaching where the professor stood. The professor stretched out his hand and embraced Pete almost to the point that it became uncomfortable.

“For those of you that don’t know, this is Doctor Peter Michaels, possibly the foremost leader in ancient languages. He has dedicated more than thirty years to deciphering and decoding so many of our ancient artifacts at the Smithsonian and worldwide.”

“Today we humbly request you sir to please take project lead and help us crack this mystery for yours and our sanity.”

With that, the professor stepped down leaving Pete alone on the stage.

“Thank you professor for your faith in me. I wont lie, but from what you’ve explained, I genuinely believe this to be some sort of hoax, and therefore I will thoroughly examine the find and make a scientific deduction.”

Doctor Michaels briefly explained his intentions to have the artifact shipped to his labs to run scientific and digital analysis to either authenticate or refute the claims being made.

With that the meeting concluded and the auditorium emptied quickly.

The Upper Room

“Peter, can you spare a few minutes upstairs. The director wishes to have a word with you...”

Pete looked up and immediately his eyes fell upon Barbara. For a split second, his mind drifted off to Italy, more specific to a small-secluded villa, where he had met Barbara for the first time. She had just concluded divorce proceedings and had taken time out to reflect and recuperate. He could still smell the sweet aroma of her perfume, her tiny waist, her deep blue eyes, wavy hair and delicate lips.

“Peter!” he snapped out of his daydream

“Yes, yes, sorry Barb... was just deep in thought”

Barbara burst out laughing as she gestured with her eyes to the large bulge protruding from his suit pants.

“Must have been an intense thought?” she said as she turned and gestured for him to follow her upstairs to the director

They entered a large upper room; the director was sitting behind a large wooden desk. Six chairs were lined up in front of the table, four were already occupied. Barbara ushered Pete into his seat and then sat down.

“All right everyone, let’s get down to business” the director said sternly

“I have gathered the six of you, as I believe each one possesses the skills needed to resolve this crisis as quickly as humanly possible.”

Pete butted in before the director could continue.

“You keep saying this is a crisis, but nothing has been confirmed as yet. Are we missing something here?”

The director stood up and briskly walked to the open window, where he gazed out onto the deep blue ocean.

“Please understand Doctors... if this find turns out to be genuine and this information leaks out, the entire world will be in turmoil. It is a proven fact that Christianity enjoys the largest portion of the world population. Imagine the chaos that will ensue. Besides that, we don’t know what is contained within that book. If it’s anything based on what we decoded from the case, we must proceed with caution.” The director sighed heavily.

“Enough time has been wasted. Everything you need to know is contained within the case files. Read it thoroughly, and please I need feedback within the week.”

The six got up to leave and the director motioned with his hand.

“Oh, the plane is being fuelled as we speak... all standard equipment is being loaded. If any of you have specialized equipment, please let Barbara know and she will ensure it is delivered to the airport.”

With that, the telephone rang and the director excused himself and continued with his call. The six excused themselves and each departed to their respective locations to pack and meet at the airport for the next leg of this solemn adventure.

There was definitely an aire of uneasiness within everyone. Time would tell if the fears expressed by the director would turn out to be fact or mere fiction.

As Pete and Barbara exited the lighthouse, she turned to him and took his hand.

“Pete, I hope you don’t mind”

“Mind?” Pete skewed his head and laughed

“When the director notified me about the find, I selfishly told him about you...” she paused and then continued

“I really wanted to see you again... sorry Pete!”

“Don’t apologize, really, I feel the same about seeing you again.”

Barbara blushed and then quickly changed the topic.

“So Pete, what do you think about this situation?”

“Not sure yet Barbara, but you know me and challenges!”

As they were conversing, the suv rounded the corner and stopped. The driver exited the vehicle and waved to the couple.

“Do any of you need a lift back to town?”

Without hesitation the couple raised their hands, giggled and stepped into the vehicle.

“Shane drop me off at the institute” Barbara said earnestly

“And you sir?”

“Straight home Shane, thank you”

The vehicle sped off along the dirt road, and the lighthouse faded into the distance, until finally reaching civilization, and the beginning of a rich, convoluted adventure.

CHAPTER 2

The PACKAGE

Somewhere in Cairo

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THE TRIP FROM THE AIRPORT was arduous, off the beaten path, across rivers and stretches of thicket until finally the vehicles slowed and arrived at a well-lit tented campsite. The trip had taken close on five hours and the heat and mosquitoes was unbearable.

A large bald African gentleman pointed to the vehicles to park off near to the northwest corner of the campsite. Everyone glanced at each other, as out of nowhere a group of four soldiers appeared, armed to the teeth.

Pete looked at Barbara “What’s with all the firepower?”

“Everyone, sorry I forgot to mention the security... unfortunately there are many pirates here, and this is necessary to protect us and our equipment.”

“But!” Doctor Evans remarked emphatically, but was cut off in mid sentence

“No need to panic! Since we hired these guys, we haven’t had a stitch of trouble.”