A Division of Souls - A Novel of the Mendaihu Universe (65 page)

Off in the distance to the southwest, the
Mirades Tower shot up over the surrounding buildings, the eternal
vigil. He watched it for a few seconds as a civilian instead of the
profiler that he was, attempting to accept the behemoth as the
center of commerce, for the economic shrine that it was. He wanted
to accept it, but his conscience told him otherwise, without fail.
It was an unexplainable dread he felt, something he’d dismissed so
often in the past as nerves, which kept him from giving anyone in
that building the benefit of the doubt. It ebbed and flowed within
him now, pulling him towards the Tower. If he tried, he could ride
those waves with ease, as he had been there before, to that
spiritual darkness within.

That was something he did not want to
remember.

Why now? Why did he feel this dread
now
? Was it because of the nuhm’ndah or the kiralla? Or
because of his cho-nyhndah spirit?

He chose to ignore those questions, to
ignore the dread, to ignore
everything
and go home and
sleep. He was sure Caren would have agreed with this decision
wholeheartedly. He exhaled again and headed for the roof access
door.

Nick stood up and blocked his path. In the
commotion, Poe had completely forgotten about him and that he sat
just a few seats behind. He smiled at him crookedly, for lack of
any other reaction to show.

“What…” he visibly shivered. “What the hell
just happened?”

Poe shook his head and laughed. “Honestly? I
have no clue.” He patted him on the shoulder. “Thanks, Nick.”

Nick frowned and cocked his head at him.
“For what?”

Poe shrugged and shot him a lopsided smile.
“For joining the team,” he said, and walked on.

“Hey, wait!”

He stopped and glanced at him again. “Sheila
is fine,” he said with a smile. “I believe Anando was able to sense
the people in and around the warehouse, and sensed that no harm at
all had been done. She’s still there if you’d like to go see her. I
know she’d be happy to see you.”

“I…uh…” Nick turned away, visibly relieved
and feeling a little self-conscious. “Thanks, Alec. Maybe I will.”
He gathered his uniform coat and shot past Poe, and dashed through
the door.

Good kid,
Poe thought. He watched him
leave, started to move towards the door himself, and stopped, this
time in front of Christine. He had not spoken to her for at least
six months, yet he still considered her a great friend and an
extremely gifted spiritworker that had helped protect Bridgetown
from destruction. He believed she was not Mendaihu, nor was she
Shenaihu—in fact, he was sure she had no direct alien lineage at
all over the last two hundred years. She was only the brilliant and
beautiful Christine Gorecki.

Wordlessly, he embraced her. It was his way
of thanking her for all she had done today; all spur of the moment,
all selfless. She moved into his arms instinctively, pulling him
close, sharing a deep love and a profound respect. He kissed her on
the cheek and slid out of the embrace. He gave her a genuine smile
and a nod, and walked through the open door, lighting up a
cigarette as he left.

###

BRIDGETOWN TOURIST GUIDE TO ANJSHÉ

Anjshé
is the #1 most-used language on the
Crimson-Null Foundation worlds, with Terran English a close second,
and the Mannaki
xh'omké
trade language a distant third.

Most humans and other sentients find it quick to
learn, as many find it easily accessible. Bridgetown University and
Spender College both offer degrees in Anjshé studies.

It is the main language used in transworld
negotiations within the CNF. One can make a lucrative career out of
negotiation translating.

The real intended meaning behind Anjshé is not just
in the phrasing or the inflection, but also in the spiritual and
emotional intent given by the speaker. Therefore, a very literal
translation to Terran English would come out as poor, vague
grammar. One must
listen
and
sense
what one is saying
in this language in order to fully understand it. Most humans have
learned to do this instinctively after two and a half centuries of
communication with the Meraladian society.

Although there is no single correct translation of
these words, its basic meaning is a creed of Meraladhza heritage.
Some have taken it to mean the same as Descartes' "I think,
therefore I am," though its intent is more spiritual. A
near-literal translation ("To know thyself is to be One in Spirit")
offers a much better example of the Meraladian faith in the One of
All Sacred. Without going into too much detail, the meaning of the
creed is for a person to understand their own spirit fully in order
to be part of the One, and its place within the One, as well as the
One's place within their spirit.

A 20" by 20" plaque with these words inscribed on
them is on permanent display at the northern entrance of the
Mirades Tower, celebrating its place in history.

NOTE
: Pronouns and names usually accentuated
on the second syllable, and regular nouns and verbs accentuated on
the first, though there are exceptions; those are often due to the
Terran appropriation of the word to make it easier to pronounce.
The
dh
diphthong should be pronounced as a ‘d’ with a slight
lisp.

NOTE
: Unless otherwise noted, all names and
words that have spiritual reference to them are capitalized. All
other words, including the first words of an Anjshé sentence, are
rarely if ever capitalized. They are capitalized within the novel,
however, for grammar’s sake.

aiye, aiya:
\
EYE
-yay,
EYE
-yah\
love

alaiadh:
\
ah-
LYE
-
ˌ
adh\
to give

aladh:
\
a-LADH\
to be given in
kind

allei aiya:
\
ahl-
LEY
EYE
-yah\
‘I give my love to you’; used mostly as a
way to say ‘I love you’ but can also be used to convey deep
gratitude

Anjh:
\
ahng\
word
Anjshé:
\
ahng-
SHEY
\
‘Word of
One’; the Meraladian native tongue

braudha:
\
BROW
-dhah\
a
group of people; a collective with a similar goal

cho:
\cho\
Meraladian term for
duality, used in spiritual matters as well as physical and
philosophical.

cho-nyhndah:
\
cho-
NYEEN
-
ˌ
dah\
twin-spirited

cho-shadhisi:
\
cho-shah-
DHEE
-see\
'twin lovers'; soul
mates
chufyo:
\
CHOOF
-yo\
‘unaligned’; weird
or odd

dahla:
\
DAH-lah\
a leader
physically (front of line) or economically (top manufacturer)

Dahné:
\
dah-
NEY\
leader,
specifically in spiritual situations
dayen:
\
DEY-
en\
to know

dayen-ne:
\
dey-
YEN
-ney\
knowledge

dea:
\
DEY
-ah\
rest, or
to be at rest

dehndarra:
\
den-
DAR
-rah\
to believe

D'haff Sshalé:
\
djaff
SHAH
-ley\
‘dark-minded reptile’; old Meraladian
curse, now often used against someone ill-mannered, stubborn or
mean-spirited

dhyn:
\
dheen\
star (or
stars/night sky)

di, d’:
\
dee\
general
conjunction, usually ‘and’ or ‘with’

edha:
\EY
-dhah\
formal male
title

eicho:
\
AY
-sho\
‘male
spirit’; brother

eichi:
\
AY
-shee\
‘female
spirit’; sister

eilee:
\ay-
LEE\
general
possessive (my, your, etc)

emha:
\
EY-
mah\
formal
female title

esha
:
\
EY
-shah\
center

fadayin:
\
fah-
DAY
-een\
father

fadhyané:
\fah-
DHYAH
-nay\
parent or parental
guardian

fadin:
\
fah-
DEEN\
mother

fesha:
\
FEY
-sha\
eyes;
often used to mean 'eyes of the soul'

fesh crahné:
\
faysh crah-NEY\
‘eyes opened’; open-minded, patient, or attentive

fesh piann:
\faysh pyahnn\
‘eyes
closed’; closed-minded, ignorant, or having a big ego

fi, fiyé:
\
fee\
,
\
FEE
-yay\
general pronoun (fi = singular, fiyé
= plural)

Gharné:
\
GAR
-nay\
Earth
human
Gharra:
\
GAR
-rah\
Earth
hra:
\
hrah\
to be

hrrah-sehdhyn:
\
RRAH
sey-
DHEEN\
‘five old stars’; refers to spacefaring
years, specifically a Meraladian five-point maneuver in which five
ships would surround its main focus (whether its prey or the ship
it was defending); this move would purposely cause a stalemate.
[the double ‘r’ is slightly glottal]

iedha:
\ee-
YAY-
dhah\
friend
imhsha:
\
EEM
-shah\
to be afraid

jinko:
\
JEEN
-koh\
(derogatory) unclean or undeserving of spirituality

khera:
\
KAY
-rah\
here,
there

kinléshi:
\
keen-
LAY
-shee\
sibling

kiralla:
\kee-
RAH
-lah\
‘light spirits’; the highest ascended aspect of the Mendaihu

lafiyaah:
\
la-
FEE
-yaah\
freedom [the double ‘a’
is slightly extended]

lumia:
\
loo-MEE-ah\
sight, or
what someone perceives

lumisha dea:
\
loo-
MEE
-shah DEY-ah\
‘the center of
vision at rest’; a deeply personal place set aside for meditation
and relaxation

madin:
\
mah-
DEEN
\
daughter

madayin:
\
mah-
DAY
-yeen\
son

madhyané:
\
madh-YAH-ney\
child,
offspring

mehra:
\
MEH
-rah\
spiritual state

mehridhea:
\
MEH
-ree-
DHAY
-ah\
peace

Mendaihu, Mendaihuza:
\
men-DYE-hoo\
,
\
men-
DYE
-hoo-zah\
Meraladians of
Mendaihu Descent
Meraladh:
\
MER
-ah-
LAHDH
\
‘heaven returned’; current Meraladian homeworld after leaving
Trisanda

né, Né:
\
nay\
one (number), The
One of All Sacred (m) [cap. only when referring to the deity]
nehko:
\
NEH
-koh\
untrustworthy, or to
distrust
nuhm'ndah:
\
NOOM
’n-
dah\
‘dark
spirits’; the highest ascended aspect of the Shenaihu

nyhndah:
\
NYEEN
-dah\
heart, spirit

nyhnd'aladh:
\
NYEEN
-da-LADH\
'I give my heart'; given as an
apology
pashyo:
\
PAHSH
-
yo\
general
exclamation of surprise or frustration

piann:
\
pyahnn\
closed or
closed-minded

rhade:
\
RAH
-day\
general
qualifier to add negativity or warning to a word

sa’im
:
\sah-
EEM
\
general qualifier to add grandness or excitement to a word

sehna:
\
SEY
-nah\
old
sehna lumia:
\
SEY
-nah
loo-
MEE
-ah\
‘old vision’; analogous to Akashic
records, memories of past lives, including actions and thoughts

sehnadha:
\
sey-
NAH
-dhah\
old friend, best
friend
sehndayen-ne:
\
sen-
DAY
-en-ney\
‘old knowledge’; teacher

se’nyhndah:
\
sey-
NYEEN
-dah\
‘old soul; a
particularly strong spirit able to travel past the physical
barriers of Light and physical reality