The epic sequel to "The Astronites"! A year after defeating the manic Zsar Endgon in his latest march on the UEF, Natalie Hope and the Astronites are called back to the Astronic universe for a second mission. A mysterious message is emanating out of...
Natalie sat up and reached for a glass of honeymilk on the bedside table. The dreamy beverage warmed her insides and filled her nose with smells of sugary sweetness. She wiped away her milk-stache before getting out of bed.
"Hey, Aleph," she greeted, chewing on the honeycomb. "What's new?"
Aleph Eleph, the former dean of Imagnium Studies at Oldear University, sat across from her in his navy robe. The golden stars that constellated his clothes peaked out underneath his cloudy, white beard. He sat sniffing on the chocolatey effluence of his roasted, brown softstone.
"I'm living the dream," he responded with a smile.
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It was more accurate to say that Aleph was living in a dream ever since the Mangler Mask placed him into a coma back on his actual home moon. As far as Natalie knew, the Oldear deans had not succeeded in safely removing the mask, which would fatally poison Aleph if tampered with. But Aleph wasn't without his tricks. He could still communicate to Natalie through Imagnium and meet her in the dream world, so long as they thought or dreamed of each other.
"Did you fall asleep easy?" Aleph asked. "Did you use my technique again?"
"Yeah, it worked like a charm," Natalie responded. "The more I practice relaxing my muscles and thinking about you, the quicker I fall asleep. I think last night it only took me two minutes!"
"Great," Aleph said. "Remember, consistency is key. The more you practice, the quicker you'll fall asleep on command. Now, what news from Earth? How's the pandemic?"
"Bad," Natalie glumly answered. "Aunt Missy says it's going to get worse during the winter."
"Mm," Aleph groaned, contemplatively stroking his beard. "What about your studies?"
"Going well," Natalie said a bit more optimistically. "I have my first midterm next month."
"I'm sure you'll do great. What about your training?"
Natalie flexed her biceps. Her muscular gains from the real world translated well into the dream world.
"Soon you won't need to use the Principles to get what you want," Aleph chuckled as he rose and returned the softstone into his robe.
Natalie flipped the white blanket off her body. She was clothed in a turquoise robe that depicted schools of fish swimming around. In her nocturnal meetings with Aleph, she decided to wear something resembling the students' uniforms at Oldear University, where teenagers her age went to study the Principles.
She followed Aleph into his study, where the two of them conducted their nighttime lessons. Hundreds of books, scrolls, maps, and documents resided on bookshelves. Some were so tightly packed together that they appeared to be part of the wall itself while others grew out like weeds. Aleph moved his way past the large roundtable and retrieved several volumes. As he searched for the titles that he wanted, Natalie observed the elaborate telescope that was positioned by the windows. It looked like it had been engineered hundreds of years ago by an ancient wizard.
