text: Date: Shamash, Ayyāru 1 Time: 5;45:30 Five Days before the eclipse. I have spent my entire adult life mapping and studying the heavens, determined to find out exactly why the moon covers the sun at such precise coordinates and time. The history of my kingdom was established when our ancestors met The Protector and ever since, the eclipse has been an unexplainable phenomenon. When my mother came face to face with The Protector, before I was born, he informed her that one day a natural wonder would occur to mark the beginning of a hundred-year-old prophecy finally coming to pass, and that story set me on a path in learning and discovering everything there is to know about the stars and the moon as well as the sun, and how they relate to our Great Protector. I know that I am close to finding out how things will happen, but that phenomenon has not come to pass, which means I have time to spare to figure out why it occurs. ** Date: Sin, Ayyāru 2 Time: 20;55:45 Four Days before the eclipse. The Eclipse ... That is the occurrence that will provide me with the answers that I desperately need and have been searching for. I scoured the ancient texts, and the nation's records for more evidence, and I discovered that other astronomers before me all attempted to figure out when the prophecy would be set into motion, and their research has all pointed to the eclipse! I am unsure why they did not realize sooner, but I am certain that The Protector wanted me to put the pieces together. It is now time for me to chart the rotation of the earth and the cycles of the moon to make a precise prediction on when the Prophecy’s Great Eclipse will transpire, and I tend to do so, even if I lose sleep over it. ** Date: Nergal, Ayyāru 3 Time: 3;35:25 Three Days before the Great Eclipse. The stars have begun to converge since the last time I wrote. This is the first sign of the prophesied eclipse’s appearance, and the celestial bodies will create new constellations due to their movements, which will mark the emergence of this exciting divination. If my calculations are correct, the Great Eclipse will befall us in three days’ time. I have waited for what seems to be a lifetime for this very manifestation. Around the island, odd incidents are revealing themselves as well. The crops have flourished just as it had been stated in the kingdom’s ancestral legends and the tides have become unpredictable more so than ever before. This event and my research have brought us closer to the much-anticipated circumstances of our redemption, and I know that my predecessors would be in awe similar to myself. Times are changing and I am the first one to chart the stars and moon correctly to be able to see it for myself, and I hope to enjoy my predictions and hope for a better future for my people. ** Date: Nabu, Ayyāru 4 Time: 7;15:20 Two Days before the Great Eclipse. I decided to forego my tower for today, having ascertained added information that may explain why the astronomers preceding me could not predict the heavens as accurately as I have. After deep diving into my research, the library offered me extra, original details about the eclipse and I could not resist reading as much as the library allowed. My curious tendencies led me even further into the library than I had ever gone before, and I came upon a hidden room with a plethora of analyses from an astronomer of which I had never heard. Once I had set to work on deciphering his findings, I realized that this man was a witness to the downfall of my nation over one hundred years prior. He even spoke with The Protector himself and was one of the mere few mortals who heard the prophecy firsthand, and it sent him down a path of documenting every single shift of the celestial bodies, trying to pinpoint when the prophecy would be set into effect. The astronomer documented the exact words The Protector spoke in his journal, mentioning that the first signs of the prophecy coming true would be bountiful vegetation and unruly tides, and his recordings were the steppingstone that I forlornly sought to end my lifelong inquiries about the prophecy finally. Now I have a definitive time of when the Great Eclipse will occur, and it shall be a pivotal point for my nation. ** Date: Marduk, Ayyāru 5 Time: 1;10:30 One Day before the Great Eclipse. As I speculated, the Great Eclipse is almost upon us. In my last entry, I briefly stated that the forgotten astronomer recorded that as that eclipse grew near, many unexplainable happenings would reveal themselves, and now the earth has begun to shake. Many buildings have been torn to ruins and were destroyed by the mighty quakes of the island, and we all fear that we will cease to exist with how violent they are, but I pray that it may pass over us and The Protector will allow my kingdom to see another day. My people have begun to worry about their safety, but I am sure nothing will happen to us as long as we continue asking The Protector for preservation. The eclipse is to be the dawn of our redemption and it is time for my kingdom to start having faith in the prophecy that was set in stone all those years ago. My greatest accomplishment is nearly here, only a day away, and I wish to experience it to the fullest because this event shall be the focal point for the reclamation of my beloved nation. ** Date: Ishtar, Ayyāru 6 Time: 10;14:58 Four Hours until the Great Eclipse. It is mere hours until the Great Eclipse, and the moon has begun its convergence. Unfortunately, things have gotten worse on the island, and I am not as hopeful as I was yesterday about our safety. As the moon makes its leisure streak across the sky and towards the sun, tidal waves have occurred around the island, and the vegetation has withered away, as if the salt water has killed every blade of grass out of simple spite. I am unsure if The Protector even cares about my people and me since disaster after disaster has left us with almost nothing to salvage. Maybe if I were not so obsessed with foreseeing our salvation, The Protector would have permitted this to pass over us, but I cannot undo what I have done and all we as a nation can do now is pray for deliverance. Why did I have to be correct with my predictions? Why was I so adamant about figuring out the beginning of our end? Is this truly our end? What have I done? ** Time: 12;25:40 2 Hours before the Great Eclipse. The island has shifted ... I am ambivalent to what this means, but I think the moon’s rotation towards the sun has something to do with it, and it has caused havoc in the villages around the kingdom. The moon is even closer to the sun than it was a few hours ago, and the heat has gotten to be unbearable to put it lightly. It is as if we are in the dead of summer, even though we are barely out of the winter season on the island, and this sudden and unexpected heat has caused panic as well as medical emergencies that the physicians cannot keep up with. I fear that even though The Protector promised this would not be the end of us, our doom may be upon us before the Prophesized One has had the opportunity to be our savior and bring this broken kingdom back together, and I have lost hope in my research. Protector, if you are listening to my people’s cries for help, please spare us, I beg of you! ** Time: 2;45;55 The Eclipse has begun ... The moon is slowly covering the sun and the rays have become even more intense as one stares directly up at the beautiful sight. Within the last few hours, everything has calmed steadily, the island’s drifting seeming to move as if it were a beating heart, syncing with the convergence of the moon, and I have to be honest and say that this event is the most extraordinary of all of the I have ever had the pleasure of watching. As the moon slides in front of the sun, I have made peace with the fact that if this is our last day on this earth, I can rest peacefully in my watery grave, knowing that I was able to observe such a fantastic affair. ** Time: 3;00:05 The Great Eclipse is upon us. The sky is becoming darker by the second and I can see the brand-new constellations in the sky! Never in my life have I seen something so phenomenal before ... Wait, the moon has completely stopped in front of the sun. Something is going on. Everything is so quiet, even the waves have silenced for the Great Eclipse. This, I believe, is the beginning of our salvation. The sun and moon have kissed, and the brilliant lights above have transformed! I do not know whether this journal will be found by my descendants, but if they do, remember that The Protector has given us extraordinary abilities, and do not ever misuse them. Because one day, The Protector may not be as kind as he is today.