The Persistence of Memories - A Novel of the Mendaihu Universe

by Jon Chaisson

  Allen Tatreaux – ARU Commissioner, member of Provincial Governor’s Council

  Mancka Udéma – Mendaihu Representative, member of Provincial Governor’s Council

  Craig Chiappara – Bridgetown Sentinel Force Guard Commander, McCleever District

  Kelley James – former CNF representative for Bridgetown; currently semi-retired; now an author

  Vigil

  Matthew Davison – leader and chief planner of the group. Also works as an engineer/programmer for Khema Jamison Shimura

  Jenn Underwood – second in command. Also works as a reference librarian at the Data Research Library.

  Colin Strasbourg – third in command. Also works as an Alien Relations Unit agent.

  Others, not yet introduced

  AN ANJSHÉ GLOSSARY

  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-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

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

  cho-nyhndah: cho-NYEEN-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

  milédayen-ne: ME-ley-DAY-en-nay ‘receiving knowledge’; student

  miléya: me-LEY-yah to receive

  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

  shadha: SHAH-dha to love

  shadhisi: shah-DHEE-see ‘love’ or ‘from my heart’; a term of affection

  shé, Shé: shay one (number), The One of All Sacred (f) [cap. only when referring to deity]

  Shenaihu, Shenaihuza: sheh-NYE-hoo, sheh-NYE-hoo-zah Meraladians of Shenaihu descent

  shimshiya: sheem-SHEE-yah start of a spiritual event, akin to 'call to arms'

  si: see general conjunction, used mostly as a time reference in genealogy and history

  somfei: SOM-fey general greeting

  taftika: taff-TEE-ka general phrase of thanks or appreciation

  -za: zha, sha suffix used to denote someone’s land, or alternately their clan descent

  -zi: zhi, zee suffix used as a nickname, often added only to first syllable of name, i.e. Nandahya = Nanzi, Amna = Amzi, Karinna = Karzi

  Acknowledgements

  First off, I’d like to thank all of you, dear readers. When I first decided to self-publish the Bridgetown Trilogy, I truly had no idea how it would turn out. I had a few beta readers, friends and family to tell me what worked and what didn’t, but I could only guess what the response would be once I released it out into the world. To all of you who downloaded A Division of Souls, I thank you! And I hope you enjoyed The Persistence of Memories as much as I enjoyed writing it. And I hope you stick around for the conclusion, The Balance of Light.

  I’d like to thank Amanda and Amie for taking the mighty red pen to ADoS and giving me more insight into what still needed fixing. This has been a learning process from the start, and I’ve enjoyed every moment, even when I had to kill my darlings (or in this case, my ellipses habit)!

  I’d like to thank Marcel Clemens and Shutterstock for an absolutely gorgeous cover.
Choosing the right picture was a tough one this time out, as I had a lot more to convey with just one image while still staying true to the visual theme. Thanks to Meagan for suggesting the software I used for its creation, giving artistic feedback, and for giving me a refresher course in color theory.

  Thanks to Chris, Bruce, Tracey, and my friends and family who keep me going. Thanks to Maricruz, Andrew, Vic and Brad, who completely understand and let me do what I love in the off-hours. Thanks to Saundra for jumping on board so quickly! Thanks one more time to Janice, who always cheers me on whenever I’m lagging behind.

  Thanks also to the other writers who will always respond to the #amwriting tag with cheers and smiles, you all remind me how fun this job can be!

  This one’s for all the DIYers out there: the self-publishing writers, the musicians, the crafters, the webcomic artists, all of them doing what they truly love, following their own rules. Every one of them depending on the generosity of fans, friends, donation websites, and understanding bosses at their day jobs. It’s one hell of a way to put yourself out there in the universe, but the payoff is so worth it. You are all an inspiration to me.

  About the Author

  Jon Chaisson started writing science fiction in a tiny apartment in Boston after watching way too much anime and consuming most of the nearby public library’s Japanese SF section. He then spent nearly a decade in a cool basement in central Massachusetts, creating and writing the Mendaihu Universe. He now lives in San Francisco with his wife Amanda, several books, a few guitars, and a ridiculously large music collection.

  I’m online at these fine establishments. Come and say hello!

  Twitter: https://twitter.com/joncwriter

  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jon.chaisson.7

  Walk in Silence, my music blog: http://jonchaisson.com

  GoodReads: http://www.goodreads.com/JonChaisson

  Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/jonchaisson