Prologue.
An older man sat at his desk, pouring over the mess of papers strewn all over. He ran a hand through his long, white hair, and sighed. There would be no resting tonight. He was so close to finding IT… the artifact he had been searching for for years … The Book of Knowledge.
"Let's have another look…" He mumbled to himself.
Once again he began carefully inspecting each and every piece of paper on his desk, looking desperately for the smallest clue… even the smallest. It had been like this for years now, looking for clues like this… clues leading to the location of the book. His search, it seemed, had hit a brick wall.
And now, that wall had broken.
KNOCK, KNOCK.
The man left his chair and headed for the door.
"Who is it?" He asked, looking through the peephole.
Outside, and extremely tall man waited by the door. He wore a large hat, as well as a long cloak covering his body all the way to the floor.
"Professor Macable?" Asked the man. His voice was low, calm, and smooth, like a peaceful stream.
"Who wants to know?" Responded Macable.
The man reached into his cloak. "I have a request." He said. "In exchange for some information, I would like you to search for something…. May I come in?"
Macable unlatched the door and opened it. The stranger stepped through.
"What kind of information?" Asked Macable.
The man took a piece of paper out of his cloak and handed it to Macable. "Please read this…"
"This… This is… Where did you get this?!" Asked Macable, astounded.
"Things come and things go." Replied the stranger. "If I am correct, this is the final clue you need to find the artifact you are looking for at this moment, yes?"
Macable raised an eyebrow. "Who are you who know so much about my affairs?"
The tall man smirked. "You think you have been keeping this secret well, professor, but someone has been leaking information. News of your search is all over the internet... Perhaps you should get a computer to keep track."
Macable cursed under his breath. "I'll have to start right away then." He said. "Every country in the world will be after this book… What did you want in exchange for this again?"
The tall man handed him a piece of paper. "This is my number. Call me when you have found your Book of Knowledge, professor."
The man quietly left, leaving Macable standing in his doorway, astounded at what had just happened. A man had just entered his apartment, handed him a piece of paper that solved all his problems, then left. Just like that.
Never in 30 years of being in this business had he experienced something like that.
Never in 30 years of being in this business had he been so lucky.