The Dharma Revelation

Chapter 20

Daniel scratched under his cast as best he could; it itched horribly. Unfortunately, the doctor's instructions were very clear about removing it. He was up late the previous evening listening to Aaron Breuer talk about Dharma and how they met in Israel, her strange upbringing and her mysterious appearance at Osiris.

He was looking forward to seeing her again.

After a quick breakfast, he was on his way to the daily staff meeting, where Caleb and the six gathered and set the day's agenda.

Daniel had a message on his phone that morning from St. Agnes Hospital. Turner reported that Jessie was still alive, in stable but critical condition. There were no strange incidents, strange visitors, or inappropriate attention.

This good news launched Daniel's day in the right direction.

He found the Osiris facility to be majestic. There was a profound peace and serenity that he couldn't quite explain, especially in the Afriel, Israfil and Metatron wings. There was an unusual amount of plant life, coupled with a strange technology behind the lighting, which allowed sunlight to permeate through areas in the walls that were not outside facing. Skylights and vaulted ceilings—which must have been an architectural headache—appeared at random, with no understandable pattern. The air was impossibly fresh, as if the whole building used a non-recirculated ventilation system.

Daniel had spent a lot of time in cathedral-styled architecture and found the dynamics conducive to meditative and contemplative prayer. He had never seen or heard of modern structural design that conveyed that sort of feeling.

As he entered the room he was pleased to see that he wasn't the last one to show up. The other five were already here, but Caleb was absent. They sat around the table in Aeron office chairs, and there was a whiteboard built into one of the walls. Strangely, there looked to be some sort of tic-tac-toe diagram on the whiteboard.

Kushan politely wished Daniel a good morning. Daniel found Kushan to be one of the nicest people he had ever met. Polite and soft-spoken, he always seemed to have a firm grasp on his surroundings and the effect his actions or words had on those around him. His large glasses gave him even more of an innocent look. Daniel had learned the previous evening after he told his story that Kushan had a wife and four children, all living in the Afriel wing with him. Deeply spiritual people, they were scholars in the Hindu faith but also branched out to study the other major religions.

Daniel took a seat next to Kushan and noticed Petra glance at him as she was in the middle of a sentence. She had on a white shirt, which seemed European in design. The color was a sharp contrast to her dark, attractive features. Her thick, black hair, and large, dark eyes gave her a Mediterranean look—perhaps Italian or Greek. She smiled politely at him as she hooked her hair behind an ear.

Vincent and Aaron were discussing something with Petra, which seemed important to them.

Daniel nudged Nasir, "Nasir, do you guys often get bored here? I couldn't help but notice someone was playing tic-tac-toe on the whiteboard."

Nasir chuckled softly, "Yes, I mean no, we don't get bored. It was Dharma. She had mentioned something about the game a few days ago, and we were trying to determine what she meant."

"Interesting," Daniel said, absently scratching around the cast on his arm. "What exactly did she say?"

"That there are important lessons we can learn from that game."

Daniel frowned in thought. He stood up and walked over to the board.

He stood there for a few moments, staring deeply at the tic-tac-toe game. He became oblivious to everyone else as their conversation died down and their attention shifted to him.