by A. J. Dobbs
Cranford, I’d like to think tried to smile but only managed to conjure a smirk, but I could see the tension of moments earlier had dissipated a little. A few ticks of the hands of my now favourite watch and the storm appeared to have peaked.
‘You have changed me forever, Elias. I don’t know if that’s good or bad yet, but what I believe as truth, is not absolute anymore, is it?’ I didn’t answer, I just let him think.
Cranford sighed looking upwards to his heaven, shaking his head in silent rage at a system that had given him knowledge, beliefs and faiths that were now found wanting. He began muttering to himself in his own ideological battle unaware of Daniel and me being in the room.
Now I am a patient man, but even I was getting wound up, screaming inside my head, Come on, Cranford; make the leap.
Daniel, who had been resolutely silent, now mustered the courage to speak.
‘Mr Cranford, I get what your problem is. My world has also been turned upside-down. I’ve been lied to by my parents and everything I have been taught I find out is rubbish. I was angry, Mr Cranford, very angry, but anger doesn’t change what’s gone. My father was murdered by a man who needs to be brought to justice and that’s what I plan to do. I’m also now the Keeper of this seal thing, which I still don’t really understand and I have a dog that talks to me; so I need a friend here.’
Cranford cracked. Daniel had made the breakthrough and he laughed. ‘A talking dog, you say; well, now I know you need help. I like you, Daniel, there is honesty to you that I understand; your father would have been proud of you.’
Daniel’s eyes started to well up; the emotional rollercoaster was still in full swing.
Cranford now looked at us both intently. ‘I can see you are both well-rehearsed in your arguments. Perhaps the line between what I understand as truth and lies isn’t as clear as I had previously thought, but I do know that I am charged with protecting the people I serve and on that point I believe we are all in agreement.’
Cranford pondered a moment, once again deep in his own thoughts before eventually speaking.
‘I don’t appear to have any option here, do I? I can’t unknow, if that’s even a word, what I know and I’d rather like to see this talking dog.’
Daniel and I laughed in unison.
Cranford held out his hand for us to shake in turn, an ancient Earthien trait of sincerity and agreement I still found endearing; I knew then our mission had been successful.
‘Okay, Elias, Daniel, when do I start?’
A Bibliography of sorts!
A
Albertus Magnus
Albertus Magnus is the Keeper of Peace on Thera and the head of their society.
In real life he was a Catholic saint who lived between 1193 and 1280 and in legend was an alchemist.
Alkahest
An alchemical solvent referenced in the writings of Sir Isaac Newton that supposedly was able to divide all substances into their component ingredients.
Arahas
To act as a metaphor for the “mirrored” worlds of Earth and Arthe I used word reversal for many of the Theran nouns. So the desert on Thera is Sahara reversed.
Arcanum
Another alchemical reference. It means a secret or something that’s locked in a chest. In the book it is the all-powerful vessel which once held all seven seals and it was inspired by the stories of the Ark of the Covenant.
Arthe
Earth’s other half and derived from a re-arrangement of the letters of “Earth”.
B
Bathyscaphe
A free diving, self-propelled submersible vehicle similar to a submarine
Big Jack
The lead rogue in Arahas Prison and collaborator with Frank Buckley the prison warden. The name inspired by an AC/DC song.
Butcher
One of Smee’s men.
C
Cad Goddeu
A forest in the Southern Lands. It takes its name from a medieval Welsh poem and in English it translates to “The Battle of the Trees”.
Calum Shurman
Son of Elizabeth and whose future path will have a major impact on the lives of many.
Cask 43 Wine
A special wine brewed only in Tolemak. The name comes from within a lyric of “The Fountain of Lamneth” by the rock band Rush.
Commander Abberline
Frederick George Abberline was a Chief Inspector for the London Metropolitan Police and was a prominent figure in the infamous Jack the Ripper murders of 1888.
D
Daniel Stone
The young hero and son of Michael and Sarah Stone.
Doc Leaf
A powder used to heal wounds. It derives its name from the plant Rumex Obtusifolius or what is commonly called Dock Leaf and as a child I used these frequently to treat nettle stings.
Drows
Another Theran word reversal noun. Sword becomes Drows; the weapon of choice for the Keepers.
E
Elias Watson
The Keeper of the 2nd Seal of Thera. Elias is inspired by the main character in “The Book of Ebenezer Le Page”. Ebenezer narrates his life story in an honest and reflective way giving meaning to his situations in a way that make the pages come alive.
Elizabeth Shurman
Calum Shurman’s mother and operator at the Earth Protectors.
Everett
The mysterious saviour of the Keepers; he takes his name from the great quantum physicist Hugh Everett who in 1957 introduced the “many worlds” theory; that all possible histories and futures are real. Everett, for the moment at least, remains a mystery in the story.
F
Fawkes & Spokes
Carnival experts from the western town of Bontbridge. I just liked the “rhythm” of the two names together.
Frank Buckley
Warden at Arahas prison.
Fuggles & Golding
Fuggles and Goldings is the specialist weavers of min-ed, the cloth used to make the Keepers’ clothing. I took the names from a label on a beer bottle; they are also hops.
G
Geddy
Geddy is Daniel Stone’s Dalmatian. He can communicate with telepathy. Geddy takes his name from Geddy Lee, the lead singer of Rush. I’m a big fan.
Gadeiriol
The mythical Welsh village where the Stone family live. It takes its name from Gadeiriol, the Welsh for Cathedral.
H
Heisenberg 14
The machine used to weave min-ed and named after another great quantum physicist; Werner Heisenberg and in tribute to his great “uncertainty principle”.
I
Idaw
A word-reversal of “wadi”. Wadi is an Arabic term used to describe a dried riverbed.
J
Jade McQuiston
The Keeper of the 4th Seal of Thera.
James McFarlane
The Keeper of the 1st Seal of Thera.
Jenkins
A police officer and resident of Gadeiriol and important to the unfolding events at the end of the story.
Jones
Tom Cranford’s sidekick.
L
Lake Akgrada
A lake in the Northern Ice Fields. It’s purely made up and just sounded interesting.
Lake Aurelius
The lake outside Tolemak and named after the great Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius in deference to his writing.
Longuard
One of Smee’s men.
Lucius Crambourne
The Keeper of the 5th Seal of Thera.
M
Maskirovka
It’s a Russian term which means camouflage. It has in our modern times acquired the intelligence meaning of denial and deception.
Michael Stone
The Keeper of the 7th Seal of Thera.
Min-ed
A word reversal of “denim”, Min-ed is the thread used to weave the cloaks of the Keepers.
O
Odling Smee
T
he book’s antagonist is a tribute to the work of F J Odling Smee and his work on “Niche Construction”. This is the process in which an organism alters its own (or other species’) environment, to try to increase its chances of survival. This is a fundamental and underlying principle of the book.
P
Paris Blondfeld
The Keeper of the 3rd Seal of Thera.
Peter Lord
Head of the Earth Protectors. Inspired by my childhood love of the Warlord comics and one of its major characters Lord Peter Flint.
Professor Peart
Alexander Peart is the head of Regulogical science at Tolemak. His name is derived from Alex Lifeson and Neal Peart; the other two members of Rush.
R
Regulus
Regulus is the brightest star in the constellation Leo and one of the brightest in our night sky. It is also another alchemical reference found in Newton’s writings and is the metallic component refined from an ore. In the book the regulus is the name for the energy pathways which connect all matter in the universe and is akin to the Higgs Field famously discovered by the Large Hadron Collider in Cern.
Regulus Viewer
A crystal screen which uses the regulus pathways to connect and speak to people. My version of Skype.
S
Sam Summerhill
Inn Keeper at the Dragon’s Breath Inn. I had in my mind a Tolkien esque inn and the name had a “Hobbit” style feel to it.
Sarah Stone
Daniel’s mother.
Seal
The small metallic like discs used by the Keepers to access the regulus pathways and travel between Earth, Arthe and Thera. The seals represent the seven Theran pillars of wisdom: honour, trust, respect, sharing, loving, growing and pride. The idea comes from one of many tales surrounding the Ark of the Covenant and that it was locked by seven seals.
Simean James
Leader of the nomadic gang the Badaran and Smee’s partner in crime. Simians are the higher primates. I wanted a name that could be linked with a sub-human species.
Smythe
Inn Keeper at the Farmer’s Hare pub in Abrythin, Thera.
Snap Jack
A potion used by the Professor that crackles and sparkles to create a distraction.
Spindrift
Spindrift is the fine spray blown from a cresting wave during a storm and in the book it is the energy “spray” off the outer edges of the regulus and only collected at source within the walls of Tolemak.
Stephen Hobs
Joint founder of Pear Computers and a Theran. Just having fun playing with malapropisms.
Steve Hadthenack
The other founding member of Pear Computers. More malapropisms.
T
The Badaran
The nomadic ex-criminals who joined forces with Smee to fight the Keepers.
The
Earth Protectors
The secret organisation used by the Keepers to keep pace with changes on Earth.
The Great Book
The book used only by the Keeper of Peace. It contains the history of everything. Everyone loves the internet but if you love books the best of both worlds would be the Great Book!
The Keepers Challenge
A strategy game devised to teach Keepers the concepts of balance. Daniel learns the hard way the weight of responsibility his new role brings.
Thera
The home of the Keepers and a rework of the letters from “Earth”.
Thomas Orvieto
The Keeper of the 6th Seal of Thera. Orvieto is a city in Italy in the province of Terni.
Tolemak
The centre of the Theran control, Tolemak (kameloT) is inspired by King Arthur’s tales and the knights of the round table.
Tom Cranford
My super-cop on Earth. An amalgam and pastiche of all the fictional detectives I’ve ever come across.
The TREES
The Terrorism Response & Earth Emergency Services unit.
W
William Bates
Head of Winux computers; another malapropism.
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