Jacob Hunter and the Golden Compass

By J.P. Lewis

The second installment of The Jacob Hunter Series follows Jacob and his friends as they search for an ancient relic that has been missing for two thousand years. If they are unable to locate and retrieve it and the Grigori can find it, the world will suffer unspeakable evil. A bond is discovered when Jacob finds the second most direct descendant, a bond that is strong enough to save Jacob's life. In the process, Jacob learns his true power when he becomes one with his God. The descendants uncover a plan the Grigori are using to destroy them and take over the world. In the end, the world will see the true power of God.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Covenant Books, Inc.
• Release date: Feb 2, 2023
• ISBN: 9798886442502

Book preview

Table of Contents

Title

Copyright

Prologue

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

About the Author

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Jacob Hunter and the Golden Compass

J.P. Lewis

ISBN 979-8-88644-249-6 (Paperback)

ISBN 979-8-88644-251-9 (Hardcover)

ISBN 979-8-88644-250-2 (Digital)

Copyright © 2023 J. P. Lewis

All rights reserved

First Edition

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Covenant Books

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www.covenantbooks.com

The Jacob Hunter Series

Prologue

Journal Entry; 01/2011

Today is January first. So much has happened in the last four or five months, I feel I should write about it. For the record, I am happier today than at any time in my life. I don't mean to say when I lived with Granny I wasn't happy, but as you get older, it's different. Anyway, I have my dad in my life as well as a best friend. Most importantly, I finally know that there is a God and he loves me. With everything I have done, he still loves me.

Isaac and I have been spending every moment we can spare in the ceremonial chamber. Who would have ever thought that shy, timid guy I first met in Peru would be such an incredible ally and a really great friend? I hope when this is over, Isaac and I can find a quiet place to plant roots and raise our families as neighbors. Zach is becoming such an incredible member of our family, and Kiera, well, she is the most incredible girl I have ever met. I am pretty sure Kiera likes Zach, and I think he likes her. I have noticed that Raphael and Michael have been trying to keep an eye on them. Two days ago, we got back from Israel. Yesterday we all celebrated a late Christmas. We have been so wrapped up in trying to prevent a world war we didn't get to celebrate it. Daniel took the liberty of getting all our gifts. Last week before we left for Israel, he asked all of us to make a list of what we would like to give each member of the group. I asked to get Isaac a gold necklace with a large gold cross charm on it. It came with two. He has the big necklace, and I have a smaller one with a smaller gold cross charm. I told Isaac that if we each have the crosses, we will always be friends. I got the idea from a movie; they used a turtle dove charm, but I like using the gold cross. I think it is cool and shows we both believe in Christ. I got Zach a top-of-the-line PS3 that uses an HDMI cable to hook into the TV. Raphael gave him a membership to the PlayStation network allowing him to play with other people online. He loves it and plays every chance he gets. I gave Kiera a certificate to a spa here in town. She will get to go once a month and do whatever girls do all day in those places. I know when she opened it and read it, she was excited. I guess I did okay.

I didn't have to have Daniel get Gabriel something for me. I already had something for him. When we were in Peru last year trying to find Raphael and Isaac, I met a nice lady in Cajamarca. She recreates famous Inca relics with the rare granite that the area is known for. She made a one-foot statue of an Incan god. It is made of dark-green granite with swirls of white that run through the rock like veins of blood through the body. When I met her, Gabriel was getting supplies. She and I struck up a conversation. She was impressed that such a young American could converse with her in her native tongue. She had some actual relics on the wall written in the old Incan language which she had never been able to decipher. As we spoke, I explained what they said, after proving I was able to read them. Once I translated all her relics, in appreciation she gave me the statue. I hope Gabriel likes it. He has it on the nightstand by his bed.

Last night, Daniel surprised all of us with a fireworks show. He has a friend who does shows for a living. He set up a cool display. It was set to music from an old group called Queen. The first song was We Will Rock You, and then it changed to a song called We Are the Champions. I heard the songs in a Mighty Ducks movie when I lived with Granny. After watching and listening to it, I was ready to fight another group of somatics.

Anyway, it was nice coming home and finally having a chance to relax. It's nice here in Georgia this time of year. It seems to be warmer than where I was living in Tennessee. I woke up early this morning and went down to meditate in the chamber. I began seeing images of people I have never met. I don't know if they are from my past or future. It was all incoherent. Usually, Isaac meditates with me and the visions I get seem much clearer when he is with me.

Gabriel and I are taking a trip tomorrow. He says it is time we have a father-and-son retreat. I overheard him talking to Raphael and Michael. I think they may have decided to make it a father-son/daughter trip. That's fine with me, I would rather all of us go. He wants to take me to Florida to experience deep-sea fishing. I have never seen the ocean except when I met Elijah. That was a sea, not an ocean, so seeing the Gulf of Mexico should be cool.

One last thing before I go to bed. I have been seeing a girl who is around my age. I see her lying on a table. The funny thing is I see someone else lying on a table opposite hers, but I can't see who it is. I think it is a warning because the person on the other table is a boy. Somehow in the dream, I sensed he died. I think it means not to try and have any more ceremonies like Kiera and Isaac. They had a double ceremony and did fine. I am not sure why if we have another two descendants who need their inheritance; we shouldn't kill two birds with one stone. Until I get a firm answer, I will make sure not to have any more combined ceremonies. If it is an omen, I am not going to take a chance.

Chapter 1

Happy Birthday

The four descendants spend the next month relaxing and training. Daniel enrolls all four teens into virtual school to avoid, as he says, having a compound full of middle and high school dropouts. As the month changes to February, Jacob notices the grass is growing faster and the days are getting longer and much warmer. He and Isaac have gotten into a strict routine of school from seven in the morning until noon, then they spend a couple of hours in the chamber between working out and training. Jacob runs downstairs to the chamber with Isaac fast on his heels. They remove their shoes and go to the middle of the room where they have been spending so much time lately. Jacob sits with his legs crossed as Isaac follows while holding out his hands for Jacob to complete the bond.

Half a world away, a boy lies his head down after a long day. While staring at the ceiling, he notices the discolored spots that seem to grow with every storm that passes. The house is unusually quiet tonight allowing his mind a chance to wonder. He thinks about everything he has been through in the last few months. He knows he has seen more than his share of violence and loss in his young life. As he rests, he thinks about a time when he didn't carry the weight of the world on his shoulders—how he used to live a normal life, like any other kid. Outside, he hears the sirens go off signaling another attack. The sound of sirens has become commonplace since the war that never made it to his country's border.

A little over a month ago, the news reported that his country attacked Iran; all the reports on the news were proclaiming that the Russians are coming. He looks down at the watch he has had since he was eight. The leather is worn; the crystal is scratched. He notices the time changes to midnight; on the old watch's face, he sees the date change. Peacefully he stares at the ceiling trying to muster a smile. He made it to another birthday. In his mind, he pictures a cake with thirteen candles on it; he closes his eyes making a wish before blowing into the cold night air. His dad died when he was less than a year old, so his mom did the best she could to raise him with very little money. He remembers back to his eighth birthday, she made him a cake and had a present for him. As he opened the watch, he had no idea it would be the last present he would ever receive from her. After all these years, he keeps the watch close, cherishing it, knowing it's the last memory he has of his mom and a time when he had a normal life. He closes his eyes to try and get some rest when he hears the door downstairs open, followed by voices filling the bottom floor.

Shortly after, he hears the pitter-patter of tiny feet coming up the stairs, walking quietly in the hall. Within seconds he hears a faint knock at his door. A timid girl opens it. She quietly asks, Ben, are you awake?

Ben lies still while staring at the ceiling. Yeah, I just felt like going to bed early tonight.

The little girl sighs before asking, Could you come downstairs and help me put some things away, please? I promise it won't take long.

Ben knows he can't say no to the closest thing he has to a little sister. He gets up, begrudgingly, throwing on his shorts and a shirt he has sitting on a chair next to his bed. Ben and Aliyah have lived together since he found her in the ruins of her house that was destroyed three years ago. She was only five. With one wayward bomb, she was an orphan. Now eight, she is becoming a young lady and a beautiful soul in a world with so much violence and evil.

Ben leaves his room walking down the old hallway. With each step, he can hear the constant squeaking of old boards under his feet. At the end of the upstairs hall is the staircase that leads downstairs to the common room next to a kitchen with a dining room.

Ben heads down, stepping off the staircase, rounding the corner that leads to the kitchen, where he is startled by a loud cheer of happy birthday! Ben takes a few steps back. He tries to regain himself; the scene in front of him comes as a real shock.

Once composed, he smiles before greeting his friends. Thank you, everybody. I'm not sure who told you, he says, while giving Aliyah a stern look as she hides behind her big sister.

Everyone crowds around him, trying to reach out and touch their hero. Adam is the first to pat him on the back as he enters. Adam is sixteen. He is the one that goes out and gathers supplies when anyone in the group needs them. He is also the oldest; because of this, he handles most of the business of the household. David holds out his hand pulling Ben into a hug. David, who is eleven, was found by Ben when he was nine. He was living on the streets. Akeem, who is thirteen, shakes his hand while holding Noah on his shoulders. Noah is the newest member of the group having been found less than three months ago. Ben hugs Sarah who is fifteen and Hannah who is twelve and very vocal.

He stops at young Aliyah, giving her a stern look. She looks down innocently before looking back up and smiling. Ben picks her up while giving her a gentle loving hug. Ahmad stands behind the little girl smiling as his best friend finishes hugging the girl. He looks up at the boy before pulling him in while giving him a firm hug; he releases him before turning back to the crowd. He is overwhelmed by his friends whom he now calls family.

Adam, Sarah, and Akeem set the table before calling everyone in for a celebration dinner. Adam pulls out four large pizza boxes from Domino's Pizza. He has an agreement with the manager to give him any leftover pizzas rather than throwing them away. Everyone sits eating and drinking an assortment of soda pops they had in the refrigerator.

Ben listens to his family, all happy and celebrating while remembering back to when he found many of them. Adam was already surviving on the streets when he met Ben. Ben knows how hard it has been for him having to be a provider and the protector of so many young people. He looks down the table at Sarah. He found her and a girl named Diane four years ago when he and Lucas broke them out of a cage they were in, headed for the slave trade industry that runs rampant in the Middle East. They were eleven when they were rescued. David sits quietly listening to everyone with a smile on his face. When Ben found him, he had been terribly abused and refused to speak. He began making sounds again a year ago as Ben and Ahmad have made it a point to work with him every day to speak again. Finally, he looks next to him, at the little girl who laughs as she watches everyone observantly. Aliyah is his favorite. When he found her in the rubble of her house, she was injured and in shock. Her injuries were so severe he risked his family to take her to a clinic where they were able to give her much-needed medical aid. He lied by saying she was his sister, which allowed her to be treated. Ever since then, she believes he is her big brother.

Finally, as the night is getting late, Ben's best friend, Ahmad, decides to toast his friend. Okay, everyone, let's quiet down. I want to be serious for a minute. Everyone finally quiets down as Ben readies himself for whatever embarrassing thing his friend is going to say.

Ahmad raises his glass. As one of the original forgotten kids, I want to salute the boy who made us possible. Ben found me four years ago, living on the streets. He talked me into staying with him, and I can say, he truly is the greatest person I know. Four years later, we now have ten in our group. I would imagine if not for the boy who sits in front of us, many of you would be in some orphanage or worse on the streets or in a gang. I was in the process of joining the Palestinian resistance when Ben found me. Now that I'm older, I know what happens to people in those groups; I much prefer the family I have found here. Once again, he raises his glass high. To Ben!

Everyone raises their glass and yells, To Ben!

They take a drink before starting to chant, Speech, speech, speech!

Ben holds up his hands to quiet the group. Thanks, everyone. The last time I had a birthday cake was when I was eight. So, thank you. I know when I found a lot of you, you probably thought I was helping you. He stops smiling, looking around making eye contact with every set of eyes in the room. The truth is you helped me. He pauses. I don't want to end this celebration without acknowledging our founder. Lucas found me when I was eight. He took me into his home which at the time was an old shed behind an abandoned house. When he found me, I was in a bad place; he gave me a roof over my head while giving me back a sense of belonging. He was fifteen when he took me in. Ben remembers sadly the good and the bad from that time in his life. Tomorrow will be a year since his death; not a day goes by that I don't think about him. So please don't forget our friend. As for me, I thank you and remember what I always say. Friends come and go, but family is forever.

After finishing the cake, Ben opens a gift everyone pitched in to get for him. As he holds the box that has been wrapped with a plain brown grocery bag refurbished into wrapping paper, he looks at all the words written on the paper. Everyone signed the wrapping paper with birthday wishes. Aliyah looks curiously at her big brother. She notices, a lone tear running down his cheek as he reads the words his family wrote. Once he has read every birthday wish written, he carefully opens the present making sure not to tear the wrapping and destroy the words written on them. Once opened, he sees it is the latest Sony MP3 player. He smiles as Ahmad and Adam know he is an avid lover of music. Once again, he walks to all eight of his family members, giving each of them a hug while thanking them for the present.

With all the speeches made and celebrations ended, Ahmad and Aliyah send Ben off to bed so they can clean up. Before leaving, he grabs one more piece of cake and a soda before heading up. Ben walks along the hall to the room at the very end on the right. He slowly opens the door, walking over quietly before taking a seat beside his friend, whom he calls his big sister, Diane. She has been with him since she was eleven. She was the other girl found in the cage that was about to be sold to the highest bidder. Diane has always been the rock that held the family together. She was a natural mother when Aliyah would get sick or when Noah would fall cutting his knee. They all would come to her.

He leans down gently kissing her cheek. Hey, sis, he says quietly. I have a piece of cake and some Coke. Do you want it? You have to open your eyes and tell me. Finally, when he receives no response, he places the cake and unopened soda by her bed before leaving, quietly closing the door.

He lies down in bed with a smile on his face as he turns on his MP3; he realizes Adam and Ahmad have already loaded many of his favorite songs.

As he listens to the first song it reminds him of when his mom was killed by a terrorist attack while they lived in Eastern Jerusalem. After she died, he had no alternative but to go out on his own. He lived in many old buildings, anywhere he could find before Lucas finally found him. Not long after, he began finding others like him that were orphaned. As he listens, he stares at the ceiling, content that today was a good day. He thinks about when they found their current home; it was abandoned during the Israeli disengagement from Gaza back in 2005. A stranger he met six months ago helped him and his family to be given the right to stay here; now, no one can force them to leave. He is also reminded of the pain he endured when he lost that same friend several months ago. He knows his friend would be pleased with how they have all made it a real home.

*****

Halfway around the globe, a boy is sitting in a ceremonial chamber seeing a vision of a boy he has never met. He sees a group of boys and girls living together in an abandoned house. He has never seen this boy in his life, but he feels a connection to him. Jacob concentrates hard on trying to discern the reason for the latest vision. Isaac, who is sitting across from him meditating as well, feels the unmistakable current of rushing air.

He opens his eyes to see the empty void of nothingness. Jacob, you're opening a portal!

Jacob opens his eyes, seeing the dark empty space swirling just feet from his best friend. At that moment he knows it will take him where he wants to go.

Chapter 2

The Forgotten Kids

Jacob springs up running to grab his and Isaac's shoes. He runs back throwing Isaac's shoes at him while grabbing his hand, pulling him into the portal without discussion.

Ahmad is finishing the dishes while Aliyah dries them before putting them away. Ahmad feels a rush of air along with a sharp change in temperature. He turns around seeing a black swirling void of darkness within feet of his little sister.

He jumps a chair grabbing Aliyah, pulling her away from the strange occurrence that currently invades their home. Seconds later, two figures begin to appear from the darkness.

Ahmad pulls the girl behind him as he prepares to defend his home. He