ENCOUNTER by Hep Aldridge (bill gates books recommendations .txt) 📕

day, there was an accident, and their creations caused a massive chain reaction explosion that obliterated their land and caused terrible flooding around the world. When the seas returned to their normal state, there was nothing left of the island or its people; it had been vaporized.”

We were all sitting there stunned, and I heard Dimitri whisper the one-word question.

“Atlantis?”

Doc said, “I believe so.”

I turned my attention from the floating orb back to Jeannie, who was still staring at it. I felt a profound sense of sadness overcome me as she turned. When I looked at her face, I saw and felt great sorrow emanating from her.

When she spoke, it was in a hushed tone, “I think that will be all for now; we will resume later,” and disappeared.

We sat there for a couple of minutes, lingering over Jeannie’s last thoughts. We left the building and moved to a seating area in the median of the street.

“I hope we haven’t crossed a line with Jeannie,” Doc said.

“I don’t think so. I think it was just the memory of what happened—something she doesn’t want to think about. We obviously unknowingly dredged up some painful memories for her. Best leave that topic alone in future discussions,” I said.

O’Reilly said, “I felt her pain, her sorrow; it was so real. I felt like it was mine.”

“I think we should just take a break and see what happens next. I don’t think we should call her again. We need to wait until she contacts us,” Joe said.

We all agreed and started walking down the street/thoroughfare when Reggie said, “Look, guys, there’s stuff out now.” She was pointing into the doorway of a building we had been in before with a long stone table and benches. Now, the table was covered in a colorful cloth with bowls and vessels sitting on it.

We went inside and found artwork on the walls and what we took to be food on the shelves in the back room.

“Maybe this was some kind of eating establishment or restaurant or something,” Dimitri said.

We walked outside and looked in the building next to it and saw similar signs of habitation. Now there were large urns with plants in them dotting the street, and some of the buildings had colorful designs on the outside, things that had not been there on our first examination of the city.

“Jeannie did say that these kinds of things were still here, just out of phase/sight. I think she has decided to let us see what this place looked like when her people lived here,” Doc said.

The revealed items added a sense of beauty to the Citadel, in contrast to its original stark appearance. Fluttering banners and tapestries hung inside and out.

We were still taking in our colorful surroundings when Dimitri said, “I’m hungry; let’s head back to camp and grab some chow while we wait.”

“Good idea,” I said, and we headed back up the street toward our little campsite. As we got to the building with the long table, lettering over the doorway lit up, and an aroma of fresh-baked bread came from its doorway. We looked inside and saw the table had been set with more fruit, bread, cheese, and flagons, and lanterns were flickering on the table.

Joe said, “I’m not sure, but I think we just got an invitation to lunch.”

Reggie said, “I think you’re right, Joe.”

We entered and enjoyed another excellent meal. This time, there were bowls containing strips of meat, unidentifiable but delicious. The flagons contained a type of drink that titillated Doc’s palate.

“I have no idea what category this drink falls into, but I could happily spend the afternoon indulging in it. A superb wine, I think,” he said.

We decided this was as good a place as any to wait to hear from Jeannie. So, we took our time and savored the meal and drink that had been provided. About an hour later, we all received the same one-word message from Jeannie, “Return.”

We took our seats in the chamber, and I returned to the Cathedra of Knowledge, but before I could place my hands on the arms, Jeannie appeared.

We were not quite ready for that and were a little shocked. I placed my hands in the arms’ impressions and asked, “You can appear at will without being summoned?”

“Of course, I can,” she said, again with that enigmatic smile, and then stepped off the dais and walked around the room.

That shocked all of us. I believe we had all seen too many Sci-Fi movies where holograms or beings like herself were locked into one location, unable to move around freely.

“You said you could leave this building and materialize in other buildings if called, but does this mean you can walk out of this building if you want to?”

“You mean like this?” she said as she walked out the door.

“Yeah, like that,” I stammered. She abruptly appeared on the dais, smiling, startling us all.

“I can move freely around the Citadel and even out of it if I wish.”

“Okay, I think we need to find out a little more because some of our notions or assumptions about you are inaccurate.”

“Yes, I can see the confusion, and as you can see, you do not have to put your hands in the impressions to connect with me. Their purpose is only to establish initial contact and transference of basic knowledge; in other words, it’s our first point of mental connectivity.”

It was then that I realized my hands were not on the arms of the chair anymore.

Before any of us could speak, Jeannie raised one of her slender hands and said, “I must apologize for the abrupt ending of our earlier session. The story of the destruction of Attalia brings with it much pain and sorrow. But it also underscores my warning to you about experimenting on the power cubes in your possession. Also, I have not been totally forthcoming with you and my role in the Citadel. As I said, I can move about freely within and