Tales of the Crystal Tower

TALES OF THE CRYSTAL TOWER

TALES OF THE CRYSTAL TOWER
INTRODUCTION

This web page is a private development page for my novel Shamans' Song -- www.Shamanssong.com.

These vignettes, the Tales of the Crystal Tower, take place during the Third Age of the Shamans' Song universe. They will be posted here as written. The novella that they accompany is here: http://shamansong.weebly.com/novella.html

 The back-story for the Crystal Tower, including the Language of ZOMTAT, may be found in the Books of the Crystal Tower, here: http://zomcrystaltower.weebly.com/

Trimancy [ZAMaMeR-SURYaT], Divination by Threes, is found HERE.

Index of the Tales

[1] Thorn's Tale
[2] Feo's Tale
[3] Ice's Tale
[4] The Mage's Tale
[5] The Dragon's Tale

Link to these Tales: http://shamansong.weebly.com/tales-of-the-crystal-tower.html

The Further Tales of the Crystal Tower, following Thorn's Further Adventures in the Further Tales Tabs.

© 2019/2020

Thorn's Tale Qualifying as a Cadet at the Crystal Tower Academy
In the Year 126 of Human Habitation of ZOMTAT (Alterra)

-1- Waking Up

A voice from the farmhouse kitchen: "Thorn! You've slept late enough. Time to get up! Your father and brother are already on their way to the North Field, where you’d normally be with them. It's another day on the farm, though a special one for you."

A voice replies from upstairs: "Oh Mom, just a while longer. First day I wasn't up at dawn that I can remember..."

"If you don't come down in five minutes, I'll send the twins up to get you..."

She smiles as she hears a groan from above.

-2- Sisters

Five minutes later.

"Off! Don't jump on me you two!"

"Enough!"

"Mom must know how annoying you are!"

The twin six-year-old girls continued giggling as they jumped up and down on Thorn's bed, eventually ending up in a confused pile, and falling off the bed with him. One of them shouting, "He's awake Mom!"

-3- Farmhouse Kitchen

The farmhouse kitchen looked out over the garden with the fields beyond.

It was another sunny day with just a hint of clouds blowing in from the Conjoining Sea, a few miles eastward. Of course, since Mother was an accomplished Weather Witch it was always a perfect day on Old Daeg's Farmstead, where the family had lived for four generations.

Constructed of material looking like stone that had been poured, or perhaps more exactly grown, into a series of interlocking domes, the house did not appear to have much in common with farmhouses back on Old Terra. But that's where the dissimilarity ended. The smell of bacon (grown in the farm's own meat tanks) and eggs (from the farm's real chickens) would have been familiar on any Old American farm back on the old world.

The family was of Old American stock, having emigrated from the Midwest to Alterra's Numerica generations earlier. Old Daeg was Mother's grandfather and was still as much a curmudgeon as he had been for the past century. Thorn hadn't seen him much over recent years since the old man kept to himself, living in a cave in the nearby hills. He barely remembered visits with the old shaman when he was very young. Visits that had awoken his Talent.

Great-grandma Heagle was currently off in the eastern continental grasslands, working with the nomads as they transitioned from their bronze-age culture to a more settled lifestyle. She was an anthropologist of sorts. Or maybe a missionary. It wasn't clear to Thorn. Since human aging proceeded at a very different pace on Alterra than on Old Earth, people seemed to have multiple lives to live -- at least no one appears to have actually died of old age on Alterra in the century plus that Terrans had lived here.

So Thorn came from a family of witches, wizards and doers. Of course, he had the Sight, unlike his father and grandfather. He wouldn't have thought of applying to the Crystal Tower Academy if he did not have a proven Talent. Every Talent, though, had its limitations, and his was typical of Farseeing. He could sometimes see potential futures, but not which of the possibilities would actualize, as the future was not set. Nor, he would later learn, was the past.

While Alterra was, in a number of ways, very unlike Old Earth, the farmlands of Numerica were not all that odd. Certainly many of the buildings had been "grown" by magic from the land itself. Sometimes one could see, from far above, the shadow of one of the Dragons of Alterra, the native energy beings that predated human occupancy of the world. But mostly, the farmlands, spread along the conjoining see, were quiet, peaceful and abundant.

-4- Breakfast

Thorn was excited and apprehensive. Like most of the young folk in the farming communities he was home schooled and had been helping on the farm since he was about the age his twin sisters were now. Leaving for the big city, NuMarket City to be precise, was an adventure, though he had been there with his farther a couple times and his Uncle Jack lived there. He had to go to the City Temple to finish qualifying for the Tower Academy. And if finally accepted, it would be off to the Great Crystal Tower and an opportunity to become one of the Grey Knights that served the Tower, pursued justice, and kept the peace on Alterra, as they said...

Eating more slowly than usual he looked up at his Mother standing by the kitchen sink, "Mom, I'm having second thoughts about going... I just don't know."

His mother looked at him with concern. "A difficult decision, I know. Even for one with the Sight. Not to worry. I have a surprise for you that may help you feel better. In a short while your great-grandfather should be here, to give you his blessing and walk a while with you as you start on your way to meet Uncle Jack.

The twins were, as usual, snooping about, and as soon as they heard Mother's news they started chanting, "G - G - Pa - Pa's coming! G - G - Pa Pa coming..."

"Mom, you ought to stop 'em. No telling if their chanting won't call up a tornado! They are dangerous!"

-5- Old Daeg

And so, Old Daeg arrived at the farmstead, bearing an armful of wild flowers, wearing his old Earth-blue knapsack and shorts. The usual hubbub accompanied his entry. He hugged his grand-daughter, was nearly knocked over by the twins both jumping up into his arms at the same time. Then he turned to Thorn, reached bony hand to tussle the boy's curls.

"I sense your ambivalence --- you are reconsidering your options. That's a good thing. It is an adult thing. Children rush ahead; adults consider what may happen. You have the psychic resources to help confirm your determination. Now is as good a time as any. Let's sit on the porch, where it'll be quieter.

"Take a deep breath. Breathe deeply. I want you to let your eyes close and allow your Talent to reach out, as I've taught you. Breathe and relax."

Thorn did as Daeg bid him do, slowing his breath and focusing his mind, while sitting in the familiar setting of the farmhouse.

"Look far into your mind. Breathe and let go. Look forward along the timelines. Breathe. Allow the image to form. Let the story unfold..."

Images coalesced in the boy's mind's eye.

"What do you see."

With his eyes closed, the boy spoke in a distant voice, a voice Daeg intuited to be like that of the ancient Atlantian Remote Seer who sometimes spoke through those in his bloodline who had the Talent. He thought,
“With us even here on this distant world.”
Thorn spoke, as though far away,

"I see a forest road... I see a fork in the road... I am standing there... I see a buffalo of Old Earth, but it feels like a great wild bull of some ancient time... and it is pure white, with red eyes. Oh, such power!

"It stomps and bellows and runs off down the right path... Far down that path I see a glinting in the Sun, beyond the forest edge... The Crystal Tower looms... Radiating knowledge... Radiating strength..."

Thorn shook himself awake from the trance, "I saw the path, I saw it! I really saw it! The right path is brighter than all the other paths that split apart."

"Good Thorn. Now you see you truly have the Talent. A confirmation. And you saw a great Power guiding you; a Dragon of this World presenting to you as an archaic Being of our former home-world. The Rune Uruz. I felt its Presence too. An Auroch of the Terran Runes. Now let's confirm your seeing by Consulting the Threes."

-6- Consulting the Threes

Old Daeg took his cell phone from his knapsack and opened the Trimancy application. "In the most ancient days, the shaman would Consult the Threes by throwing sheep knuckle-bones. Such bones have narrow and broad, convex and concave sides. With two such bones you can generate ten positions. Thus, the ancients had the Nine and a tenth "don't ask now" possibilities. Later generations expanded the possibilities from the 27 prime terms to 9 nines (81) subsequent terms and then, for reasons not clear to me, to 41 threes (123) clarifying terms, allowing complex Trimantic Sentences to be formed, with true indeterminancies entering into the process. We moderns have our cell phone apps that do the hard work for us."

The twins, who had sat quietly on the porch decking during Thorn's induction started giggling again, at their great-grandfather's convoluted explanation and ran off into the sunny morning.

Thorn looked serious, "Tell me Great-grandpapa, what does the oracle say?"

"Here is what I see:

The Prime term is indeterminate and therefore changing.

  Prime term: Power Path: TODT ZARATADOD - 5/3 -
                              ZARATAD (pathway) which is (2) indeterminate
  Subsequent term: 3 - LAD (start) which is (1) positive
  Clarifying term: 22 - DAM (persistence)

  The indeterminancy is resolved by generating a new Prime term and clarifying term:

  Prime term:  Persevere: DAM - 8/3 - DAM (perseverance) (1) positive
  Clarifying term: 51 - CaD (growth)

  There are no further indeterminancies. This gives us the following Trimantic sentences:

      The indeterminant pathway starts positively; persistence!
      Positive perseverance is growth."

To which his Mother, leaning from the door, her eyes a bit teary, replied, "Well it doesn't take a seer to see the meaning here; my youngest son is destined for knighthood. The pathway is opening ahead, so long as you persevere."

She stepped to him, holding a wrapped package, and hugged him for a long moment. "Here are your Grandmama's recipe chocolate chip cookies for the road; please save a few for Uncle Jack. They were his favorite too. Your family is with you no matter where your journey takes you. But wherever, it needs to start here and now."

Continuing, as though performing a ritual,
"Great-gandpapa, will you walk with Thorn as he starts down the path that links this farmstead with the road to town and thence by the highway to the City and its Temple?"

Old Daeg bowed courteously,
"'Tis an honor to lead the way, short as it may be, to where Thorn must journey on his own. This family, in four generations, has not had another candidate for the Tower Academy, nor, I suspect, a member with the Talent as strong as with Thorn. Come lad, is your backpack ready for the road? I'll call your Uncle and let him know we are starting out; he'll need to drive up from the City and meet you on the highway."

Releasing his Mother, Thorn replied, "Yes sir! Can we walk around by the North Field and see my Father and brother?" He called off the porch, "Girls, come with us at least that far."

-7- Laving the Farm

After receiving his Father and brother's reluctant blessing, and leaving the twins with them, Old Daeg and Thorn were on the pathway to town, alone.

Walking by farm fields and through woodlands, in silence a while, Thorn asked, "Great-grandpapa, you were born on Old Earth. You always have your Earth-blue backpack or hat with you, like the Old Pioneers -- you know, it's really a different blue than Alterra's sky! But, what was it like there? What was Earth like? Why did you lead our family here, to Alterra?"

"Ah, boy, that's a long story, but we've got a long walk, on such a beautiful day. It's really about the multidimensional nature of what we call reality, and how this world and that world are the same and not the same.

It's about timelines and intentionality. It's as much about defining as discovering. It's about the power of the Talent to find its way through fractal possibilities, through bifurcations beyond bifurcations, from there to here. It's not about your Talent, or even mine, as slight as it is, but about the world-shaking of the Mage who sits in the Crystal Tower, the Tower to which your journey ultimately leads.

"But, yes, I was born on Old Earth, in the middle of America, during the great days of the mid 21st Century, before the asteroid struck in the Pacific Ocean...

"We lived in middle America in what was once a farming community. Farming techniques had improved to the point where only a small percentage of the population actually farmed. Mostly our home town was a small college town surrounded by farm fields. Our family was one of the few that still worked the land with the help of various robo-tillers and self-driving harvesters and the like. We, or rather, our machines, grew a lot of food.

"That was before the Gate was opened. Before the Mage called to us with an offer we could not refuse. It was a time of civil unrest, as though folks had a premonition that something terrible was about to happen. It must have felt that way in ancient Atlantis just before the end. Anyone with any Talent was feeling the waves of probability coalescing toward a terrible moment. That's when the Mage's psychic call reached us. Our family had a history of, let's say, weirdness. Several of us had untrained Talents. We come from a long line of shamans and seeresses. Little did anyone, except the Mage, suspect that on Alterra all such Talents would be magnified.

"The story is simple enough. The call came. Partly though rumors on the net; partly through a strong premonition. I packed up the family, cat and dogs and robots into our old truck, drove a couple thousand miles to the Site of Embarkation. Only those who heard the call were there. Thousands of them. It was at a place call Devils Tower, which also featured in an old 20th Century Terran story of aliens and transformation. My friend the Mage likes his little jokes.
At the appointed hour, a large oculus opened in the side of the monolith and, as the song says, "I was in that band as the saints went marching in..."

"We found ourselves here, in the great plain below the mouth of the great river. With the glittering crystal that would become the Tower in the distance. We homesteaded land near the Conjoining Sea, and there is where the family still resides."

They continued walking and Old Daeg continued talking,

"What we discovered when we were here on Alterra for a few years was that the planet had a stimulating effect on any innate psychic Talents that some of us had. The Mage had chosen this world carefully. The enhanced psychic potency seems to be a result of the crystal ley lines that permeate the landmass of this world, shocked into being when this world was struck by its own meteor storm, a million years ago. That crystal structure is the same geologic feature that has the longevity effect from which we all benefit. We grow older, but very, very slowly.

"In places the crystal ley lines reach up to the surface and create up-wellings of power that can be manipulated by those with the Talent. The Great Crystal Tower is a prime example of such an up-welling -- one great crystal, rising upward a dozen stories, with roots deep into the ley lines. So also is the City Temple where we are heading. There you'll meet other young folk who are to have their Talents tested.

"Some have far-seeing abilities, like you do. Others can move things with their minds. With training, they can even coax ores from deep underground, bringing us metals we need in pure form without having to delve into the planet and disturb the crystal ley lines. Others have power over the chaos of the weather. Your mother is a natural Weather Witch. She was trained in the Valley of the Healers. Of course the healing arts here are quite different than on Old Earth, where they still use the cut, burn and poison version of medicine that we abandoned when we saw how powerful psychic healing can be. I'm sure you noticed how your Mother's Talent worked with cuts, bruises and the usually knock-abouts of farm life for the Family and our neighbors."

-8- Farmington

Further down the road they came to the village of Farmington, the largest hamlet in the area, with its General Store, Garage and a few other buildings along its one street. He always stopped at the store when he and any of the children were in town, to have an ice cream treat and catch up on local gossip. An American farmer of the 20th Century would have found the scene familiar, except perhaps for the 3-D video screen behind the Fountain counter. Old Daeg met Tyr, a farmer he knew who was taking a load of produce over to The Junction, the larger town down the road where Farmington Road met the great North-South Highway. They were invited to ride with him, saving hours of walking.

"So," Tyr remarked to Thorn as the farm truck electric engine was engaged and they rolled silently away from town, along the road, "I hear you are on your way to the Tower Academy. You're among the few young folk hereabouts who've been so chosen -- from the whole world, only a a dozen or so a year. I'm sure your Greatgrandad has told you, but it may need repeating.”
He paused for effect.
“Watch out when you're dealing with wizards and warriors. They are not like farmer folk. Their heads are filled with subtle cunning and strange secrets. They'll seek to control your Talent for their purposes. And watch out for the Master of the Tower. He's the most cunning of them all. But 'tis indeed an honor to be chosen for the Academy."

Daeg continued where Tyr left off, "I understand why the Tower is so interested in young men with Talents. Just the same as the Valley of the Healers is interested in boys and girls with those Talents. Wild Talents can be a danger, while trained Talents can be a great boon to humanity.

Back on Old Earth they had to develop various heavy industries to extract material from the ground, to make farm equipment, to build their cities and structures. This harsh delving into the guts of the planet disrupts the natural energy flows and severely limits the expression of Talents among them.”
Old Daeg continued, repeating but expanding his earlier observations,
“Here, however, wizards with the proper Talent can coax materials from the womb of the world, thus providing us with pure metals and other materials for our craft work which melds physical skill with magical intent. You should know Thorn, the Academy teaches all the Cadets how to use the power of intentional frequency to mold the structure of the world into useful shapes, such as buildings and roads. There is a discipline on Old Earth that does that; it's called "engineering" but they don't have the psychic intentionality part of the art. That's part of what's taught where you are going."

9. The Junction

The Junction was where the North Road met the South Road at their crossing with the road to the coast, along which they had come. With farm goods flowing up the road to NuMarket City and travelers flowing to and from the seashore, the Junction was always busy. Where the roads crossed several inns, diners and vehicle parks had been developed. Bright lighting allowed the Junction to function nonstop as caravans of vehicles carried commerce among all the lands to the south of the Great River.

Tyr dropped Daeg and Thorn off by one of the diners. "Thorn, this is Meg's Diner. It's been here since nearly the beginning. I knew Meg, who opened the establishment when there was nearly nothing here. She's retired to the sea coast, but one of her grandsons still follows her recipes. This is the best diner food, what Old Terrans used to call 'comfort food' on the planet. Let's eat while we wait for your Uncle Jack!

Unlike most of the Alterran buildings, grown as they were from the bedrock, Meg's was a shinny steel structure that had been imported from Old Earth over a century before. It was a standard 20th Century 'prefab' diner, made from an old railroad car. The colors were garish and the surfaces were smooth and shinny. "Takes me back to Highway 66 on Terra. Such memories!"

10. To NuMarket City

Uncle Jack arrived as Thorn and Old Daeg were finishing Apple Pie a la Mode, with vanilla ice cream, of course. After the usual greetings and catching up, Jack led them outside where his sleek, red roadster was parked. It was clearly a powerful and expensive "city car" well beyond the means of the farm and transit folk who typically visited Meg's.

Waving goodbye to Old Daeg, Thorn sat back in the comfortable passenger seat of the hover car. Alterrans had wheeled utility vehicles, including transport trucks and the like, which used heavy batteries as their source of power and rolled along the roadways.  Jack's fancy Tesla Galactic Speedster, though, used a light-weight zero-point energy core that provided ample power to lift the vehicle on the magnetic lines of force that crisscrossed the world, allowing it to smoothly glide a few inches to a few feet above the road surface -- or any surface. It was sleek and shiny, representing advanced engineering, from one of the tech worlds of the Human Diaspora; built by a company named after a famous inventor. The compay had migrated from Old Earth, established its own colony world and produced the finest transportation in The Hundred Worlds.

While they sped rapidly north toward the City Thorn wondered what to expect. Uncle Jack, perhaps reading his nephew's mind (like many in the Family, Jack had a touch of Talent) started to describe what he knew of the Tower Academy.

"There are a few prestigious private schools in and around NuMarket City. They feed students into the University, or even to colleges back on Old Earth, but none have the reputation of the Academy. Naturally, since the Academy is at the Great Crystal Tower, it is seen as the most desirable of the schools, though few of its students go on to the University. Graduating from the Academy nearly always means an appointment to the Grey Knights. The Academy accepts only the best of the best, as they like to say -- young men who have significant Talent and a commitment to service. I'm sure Greatgrandpapa told you, it's quite an honor for our Family for you to become a Cadet. It’s personally satisfactory to me as I do business with the Tower regularly.”

“But before you can finally be accepted, your Talent has to be tested at the City Temple. The Wizzards there will make the final decision. It is a formality. I am sure you'll be accepted. You do have a strong Talent. You're athletic and country-bred. Just what they want.”

“We're not due to go to the Temple for a couple days, so you'll get a chance to see the Big City and I'll get a chance to show off my Cadet Nephew to my friends. While farm folk don't stand on ceremony much, such things mean more to your City relatives. You'll need to be on your best behavior. Our second cousin is a City Counselor and I am sure he will want to have a party to celebrate your good fortune."

Uncle Jack talked on about the City and its customs, but Thorn faded into a dreamlike state where he began to see what was to come. Although the City was still beyond the horizon, he reached out in his mind and saw Uncle Jack's roadster gliding toward the glittering towers in the distance. Among them he knew would be the tall crystals that wrapped around the large dome of the City Temple.

He must have been remotely viewing someone standing in the open square in front of the Temple. He could see the half dozen great crystals that fronted the clear dome of the structure. He understood that he would be standing there soon, entering the Temple with Uncle Jack, and then, alone with just some other boys, and so he dozed and the glider sped along.

11. Arriving

They passed the Crystal Temple on their way into the center of the city, to the high rise building where Uncle Jack had his apartment. The building would have appeared familiar to any visitor from Old Earth as it was constructed from glass and steel. But unlike Terrestrial structures which were usually rectilinear this building had the appearance of having grown from the ground up, which it had. It had taken teams of magicians several years, attending around the clock, to coax the materials from the heart of the planet and into the fantastical shape foreseen by the shaman-architect.

After leaving the roadster in its parking space in the basement of the structure Uncle Jack led Thorn to the Null-grav tube that whisked them to his 30th story loft. The views of the City were magnificent. The wrap-around glass walls left the impression that the place was floating in the air.

"Thorn, there's a tradition that one relative of a new Cadet sponsors his entry into the Academy. That means that I've bought you your Cadet kit and equipment. It's all here, in this backpack. Your uniform right here too. It's time to change so I can take you to your cousin's penthouse where there will be a dinner in your honor, and then, day after tomorrow, it's to the Temple.

"Dinner at cousin Nauthez' place is not like going to a harvest party back home. There will be a formal dinner and you'll need to be on your best behavior. Don't look so worried. There will be some teenagers there and after dinner there's a deck that's part of the penthouse, with a pool, where the younger folk will gravitate. So let's get you dressed."

Thorn had looked-up what he could about Cadets and the Academy and knew what the uniform included, so he picked it up and followed where Uncle Jack pointed, to what was, to Thorn, a very luxurious bathroom. "They'll expect you to be well-scrubbed, and not smelling like your cow. After you're done, it's my turn."

A few minutes later Thorn returned dressed in the gray boots, shorts and tee-shirt of the Cadets. "You look good Thorn. The last part of your uniform is your belt, which you won't receive until you're at the Academy." The Gray Knights and Cadets wore similar uniforms, but of different shades of gray. Darker gray for the Cadets, lighter for the Knights, and lighter still for the officers of the Corps. The Knights also had dress uniforms with long pants and shirts, and battle gear, traditionally in grayish camouflage, but typically wore short gear, like the Cadets.

12. The Councilor’s Penhouse

Thorn felt strange, walking the few blocks between Uncle Jack's place and the much larger and taller structure that included his cousin's penthouse. The uniform felt different from the jeans and flannels that the country folk typically wore. It was lighter, but felt very strong and comfortable, like it flowed across his body. He had read online that the Knights' uniforms were impervious to most everything, from blades to energy weapons. He knew the uniform belt he would receive had built into it a powerful force field that could both protect and be projected as a weapon.

The doorman called up to Nauthez, "Councilor, more of your guests have arrived. I recognize your cousin Jack and I suspect one of the guests of honor is with him. Are they cleared to enter?" He nodded to the reply.

"Gentlemen, please take the third tube. You'll get off at the hundredth level and turn to your right. There are only two units at that level."

The tube provided a spectacular view of NuMarket City as they floated upward. Thorn could see the Temple glowing to the right and to the left, the waterfront area where the Great River flowed passed on its way to the Conjoining Sea. As evening turned into night the mesmerising light of the cityscape seemed reflected in the starry sky. "Uncle Jack, what did he mean by 'one of the guests'?"

"I heard that a boy from the City was also accepted to seek a position in the Academy. No doubt we'll meet him tonight."

13. Celebration

The Councilor's apartment was certainly the largest dwelling Thorn had ever seen. Just the realization that he and Uncle Jack were soaring a hundred stories into the air was staggering. When the large double doors opened into the entry he thought his family's whole farm house could fit into that one room.

His cousin was younger than he expected, maybe his father's age. They looked a bit alike too. But unlike his father's gruff ways, the Councilor was smooth and quiet-voiced. He held out an elegant hand to Thorn to clasp. "Ah, young Thorn. It is so good to meet you. I haven't been out to the Family farm lands since before you were born. It is a pleasure to welcome you to my humble home." With a wave of his arm, he directed them in. "Jack, please introduce our honored guest around. I think you know most everyone here. Refreshments are on the patio."

By the time Thorn had been ushered out to the buffet table stacked with all sorts of food and drink he had been introduced to dozens of relatives he had never met, and to more people with impressive sounding appellations that he never expected to remember.

Standing around one end of the table were some younger folk. Jack placed a hand on Thorn's shoulder and directed him to them, "Thorn, this is your cousin Perth. He's the Counselor's son and just a few years older than you. Perth, here is Thorn. Please introduce him to your friends." Uncle Jack excused himself with, "Thorn, I'll catch up with you later."

"Well cousin, welcome to the City. Is this your first visit?"

"Uhm, no. My dad and I visited Uncle Jack when I was in a martial arts' tournament. That was a couple years ago."

"Martial arts? I guess you were getting ready to become a Cadet?"

"Not really. I didn't think about that until our GreatGrandPaPa tested me for my Talent and thought I had potential."

"Ah, the old Shaman! Well, cousin, watch out for any Shaman! Even if an ancestor!"

Later Thorn was introduced to the other guest-of-honor, a City boy named Feo, who seemed at least as out-of-place in the Councilor's grand apartment as Thorn felt. The two hit it off immediately, laughing as they sampled the desert table. Thorn could foresee them becoming great friends. It was as if they had always been friends in life after life. And he saw there was a third Cadet...

Feo's Tale eMails from the Crystal Tower

-1- Introduction

While growing up in the Big City -- or at least what passes for a big city on the world of Alterra -- knowledge that the Great Crystal Tower stood at the mouth of the Great River, a hundred miles or so from the City Riverport, seeped into the minds of the youth of the city withouless than a hundred kilometers away, without anyone needing to talk about it specifically. Most people in the commerce-driven urban area preferred not to think about wizards and shamans. Best leave those who talk to the Great Dragons and manipulate the nature of reality alone. It can't be good for business.

There were excellent schools in NuMarket City, and fine homeschooling facilities too. Consequently, not many students at the Academy were from the Big City. Mostly it was farmer lads, fisher folk and the like that had the romantic intent to become one of the Gray Knights which include a quarter century commitment to Service. Feo however was a city youth who was so inclined, possibly from reading heroic literature from Old Earth. So off he went to the Academy, after proving his Talent at the City Temple.

He was surprised to find that he would not have access to AlterraNet and emailing capacity for a couple of months, as the new students learned what it meant to become a Cadet at the Academy. When this enforced period of silence ended, his first note was to his parents.

-2- Date: 15 Fourth Month 1265 ACE
From: [email protected]
Subject: Got AlterraNet access

Mom and Dad,

Love you and miss you. After you left me at the City Temple I was told you knew that I couldn't communicate with anyone until after my initiation into the Corp of Cadets. That was eight weeks ago.

I expected some hazing, but our Preceptor kept it under control. He is an amazing Knight!
They did shave our heads and called us "pups." But that, too much weeding and running lots of laps, was about it.

Thank you for being at the Celebration! I saw you but we weren’t allowed to break ranks. The initiation was an impressive ceremony with our families and the Knights there to witness our Oath and receipt of our Warrior Belts. So here I am. Only have a short time on computer.

I've made some good friends in the couple of months I've been here. Thorn, from the farmlands along the southeast coast (you met him at the Counselor’s party) and Ice (that's a nickname), from the north lands. He is a younger son of of Northmen’s Leader. Guess that makes him a Prince. Nice boy, strong talent for martial arts and strong Talent as a weather wizard. His family has the ability to moderate those fierce northern storms.

Let me tell you what it's like in the Tower. It's amazing and a little scary. Like at the City Temple light comes through the crystal walls and the whole place is filled with light all day. When AltLuna is full, the moon's light shimmers everywhere. Our bunks in the Cadet Class barracks have canopies covering them, with curtains to block out light for sleep. It's like each bunk is tented. I won't tell you that any one would ever sneak a P.A.D. in to read after lights-out... but, that Ice has no respect for rules! Guess that’s ‘cause he comes from a long line of rulers!

The food is pretty good. There's a big mess hall with a balcony where cadets sit after the chow line. They want us to move quickly, to get the chow and go up one of the spiral stairs. The Grey Knights and their guests have tables on the main floor. We're supposed to eat quietly and they play music too.

Feo

-3- Date: 10 Seventh Month 126 ACE
From: [email protected]
Subject: Figuring out where I am

Dad,

You were right. Once I figure out where I am in the social structure here at the Crystal Tower Academy I'll feel a lot less anxious.

Now that I get this is a military academy on a world without big armies, but with magic, I am beginning to figure it out. The Academy is an engineering school. I read Old Earth History with its empires and wars and think about our under-populated world where engineering is more about meditating correctly and less about calculating load-bearing, the more I realize that world holds less relevance for us -- although the teachers here all seem interested in how things are done there, and on the other worlds of the Diaspora.

The instruction is both in English and in PSAKaDAS, the language of the Tower. Everybody back home knows some words of Tower Talk, but now I'm learning how to communicate in it. It's different since its logic is built on threes, not twos. And we have special words that we have to use when addressing different ranks. It's still confusing, though there is an eBook that lists all that stuff, the Book of the Tower that we're supposed to learn.

I want to learn everything about the Tower. I am learning how the Academy is organized and how that relates to the organization of the Grey Knights headquartered here. So let's start with us Cadets.

There are four classes of Cadets, each including mostly boys divided into age groups: class one includes the cadets aged 12 -14, class 2, 15-16, 3 is 17-18 and the senior class are cadets over 18, who are really already becoming part of the Knights. We have our own Cadet Officers, appointed from the seniors. They sometimes get pushy and if you don't do what they say, it's ten or twenty push-ups.

The older Cadets train directly with the Knights and spend less time in class and more time with the Knights. There's a Pleb Year after graduation from the Academy for those Cadets who don't go to University (nearly all), but enter the Order of the Grey Knights directly. Each Pleb has a Big Brother Knight who is in charge and they go on missions and do what the Grey Knights do.

The Knights have a full military structure, divided into degrees and headed by officers of higher degrees, reaching up to the Protectors and the Mage.
Oh, and they made us memorize some Cadance Calls to help us march better. Here are some of them, the one’s not too risqué!
Cadets marching always onward.
Marching Cadets stepping forward.

As we've learned and we believe,
Gray Knight Cadets the very best.
When we march you will conceive
We're much better than the rest.

Cadets marching always onward.
Marching Cadets stepping forward.

We do believe as we've learned.
Tower Cadets marching tough.
Dis us and you'll be spurned.
Gotta know that's no bluff!

Cadets marching always onward.
Marching Cadets stepping forward.

We Cadets do believe we've learned
What it takes to become the best
Don't be worried or concerned
We'll be guarding you with zest!

Cadets marching always onward.
Marching Cadets stepping forward.

-4- Date: 30 Nineth Month 126 ACE
From: [email protected]
Subject: The Great Rite

Dad,

So in addition to being a military engineering school the Academy is part of a temple complex where humans and Dragons interact. That got made clear to me when the quarterly Great Rite happened a couple days ago. That's when we new Cadets got to experience the full power of the Protectors and the Dragons.

We've been told that most of what we learn will be about manipulating Light through Intentionality. That's what happened during the ritual. I can remember at home seeing strange lights in the sky on the quarter days. Lights way off in the distance in the direction of the Tower. Seeing it up close was another experience entirely.

Our teachers instructed us days in advance about what we would be doing. It's all set out in the Book of the Tower. Each of the ranks has a special role to play in the ritual, with the Protectors and the Mage at the top of the Tower in the Chamber of the Pyramid. That's where the Dragons coalesce.

Even we cadets are part of the energy structure that maintains the defenses of the Tower. In the Great Rite all that energy is focused and renewed.

It's hard to explain the experience. There is chanting, there is a pulse that sounds throughout the Great Crystal Tower, I think created by large numbers stepping in unison. Then the light begins to pulse in time. And great colored glowing. It's hard to express. The colors swirl around. Red below, purple above and green, blue, white and yellow in the four directions. I think the colors were from the Dragons and the Protectors. And then it all turns into bright white light pouring through everything.

I felt like I was made of light. I know that we're taught that ‘All things that are, are light.' But this time I felt it. Sorry for getting all metaphysical... maybe that's part of my Talent.

Parents Weekend is coming up. Looking forward to you and Mom being here. They're already setting up tents and pavilions just beyond the Tower Walls, in the greensward.

So we were surprised last week during our weekly class with the Mage. Every week we spend an hour or more with him at one of the quiet outdoor areas he prefers. We talk about history, magic and forging realties. In the middle of a discussion about all that another old man pops up. Literally. There was a shimmering next to the Mage and this other man was there. He was wearing old khaki shorts, hiking boots and had an Earth-blue backpack.

Was Thorn ever surprised! He shouted in a very un-cadet manner. It was his great-grandfather, Daeg. The old shaman was visiting his friend, our Mage, and thought he'd surprise us all. He did. Thorn most of all.

After class we had some free time so Ice, Thorn and I went with him over to the seaside, where there are some rocks near to the Tower where daring Cadets go diving, and watched the Altwhales dancing through the Connecting Sea. Thorn's "DoubleG Pop" -- as he called him, kept us laughing with stories of Old Earth and his adventures with the Mage, so long ago.

-5- Date: 18 Third Month 127 ACE
From: [email protected]
Subject: Oh that Thorn!

Dad,

Thorn got us into real trouble. You know how and Ice are always testing the Rules by pushing against them? Well, this time we got reported to the Mage and had to go to his office, high up in the Crystal Tower.

Let me explain what happened. There is a beach along the Great River mouth, between the Tower and the City. It's twenty miles or so from each. We usually don't have time to go there, but last week two classes in a row were cancelled and we had a free period before and after... four periods free! So Thorn asked us to go to the beach with him.

Well, how are we going to get there? I said. “No problem.” He said. Ice started grinning.

There are some battery-powered boats at the Tower Dock and few are ever needed, so it was easy to borrow one. Didn't take too long along the shore to get to the beach. There were a bunch of Townines there, out from the City for a day at the beach.

Things were fine for a while, but then some of the older teens, including some relative of Thorn, got a little aggressive. Clearly intoxicated he took a couple of swings at Thorn who stepped aside and ducked, seemingly able to predict where the swings were going. Like he could foresee them.
Which I suppose he could. That Cadet has Talent!

Well, then we took-up a triad defensive position and were ready for a fight. Not really though, since we're all trained in Martial Arts and they were clearly not.

Thorn especially has gotten bigger and stronger over the past year, and I think his cousin was too drunk. In the end it was about the girls that were there and whether Cadets were "allowed" to be with them around the fire. I think the City boys were jealous. Ice, always the diplomat, got everyone to back off and we took the boat back to the Tower.

A few days later we were summoned to the Mage's office. First time the three of us were there, but I think Thorn may have been before.

I could tell that the Mage was trying to be serious and tell us not to break the Rules so openly, but he was also sort of chuckling and probably didn't mind our little adventure. He had to tell us otherwise though. I think Thorn's cousin's father, the Counsellor, turned us in. We were told we’d have to apologize for ‘frightening’ Thorn’s cousin and friends. They were coming to the Tower for what the Mage called “Lunch, apology, martial arts demonstration.”

Well, the upshot is that Thorn actually got spanked for misbehaving! So did Ice, but much less so.
I got a warning to help my friends behave better, “Feo, you have a strong empathetic Talent. Time you learned how to project it, to help others feel and do the right thing. I’ll assigning one of the Knights to work with you on that. Maybe he’ll become your mentor for your Pleb Year. For you this escapade is an opportunity. For your friends, however...”
No one -- except the Mage -- is allowed to spank a Cadet as a punishment. Usual punishments are extra guard duty, or running laps, push-ups and the like. So the Mage lectured us about how he had to be able to trust us to obey the Rules and follow orders, since, he said, "With great power comes great responsibility." Then he pulled Thorn over his knees and spanked him about nine times, pretty hard. Thorn tried to pretend that it didn't hurt, but I could see he was embarrassed. Ice got four whacks too.

As we left the Mage winked at him and said that his GreatGrandpapa sent him his love.

I wasn't sure that we were not going to be expelled, but I guess everything will be fine. Until Thorn's next escapade!

-6- Date: 11 Third Month 128 ACE
From: [email protected]
To: ....
Subject: Home for the Holidays

Dad,
I’ll be back in time for Yuletide. Since the City isn’t too far from the Tower, my friends Ice and Thorn are going to visit us for a couple of days before they head back to their homes to be with their families. Thorn has been to the City before, for some mixed martial arts contests, but never with any free time to explore the town.
Ice has never been to NuMarket City. He grew up in some pile-of-stone castle in the far north. Lots of books and no beaches!
So I thought I’d give them a walking tour of City Center and the port aqrea, you know, the seedy side of town. They must get Knights patrolling there on occasion...
Just kidding Dad. I’ll take them to some museums and the VR center.

-7- Date: 20 Seventh Month 129 ACE
From: [email protected]

Subject: Meeting our Dragons
Dad,

What a week! We got introduced to some of the Dragons of Alterra. These were "younger" Dragons, not the Great Dragons that work with high degree Knights, but lesser, I suppose younger, Beings. The Dragon equal of Cadets, I guess. We hiked away from the Tower south of the outer wall, to some low hills that are called the Dragon Downs to what is called the Dragon Calling Fire Circle, ZAKOR YaD MOCOT MACRODYaMPSTATOD.

There were a dozen of us, the whole Cadet Second Class, with a couple of Knights to ride herd on us. You know how boisterous Cadets can get, or so they tell us. We’ve been trained to act serious, like little Knights, there there enough mischief, from Ice, Thorm and a couple of others. So we camped on the hill top in the Stone Circle there. Beyond the Circle, on a little rise, is the Fire Altar, used to call the Dragons.

Late that night the Knights rousted us and had us go over to the Altar which looks like a fire pit surrounded by large red crystals. There was aromatic wood burning. The Dragons love incense and the like. We were each given a little bag of incense and told to sit before the fire and wait. For the Dragons to come we had to sprinkle some incense on the hot crystals and enter a meditative state. We were all excited so calming down took some time. But eventually I was floating in a bliss state. The incense went upward and I felt myself really floating.

The Dragons had come. Sinuous flying snake like flowing energies. Like light but more in the mind than the eye. My consciousness was pulled from my body by one of the Dragons and I floated above myself.

It spoke, "Greetings human boy. Let us dance in the sky. Let me show you how it feels to be a Dragon and you can show me how it feels to be a human."

It waited for me to consent, which I did. We soared above the fire and glided across the hills, then turning, out over the Conjoining Sea. I could smell the salt air and feel the chill spray. At first the Dragon took me where it would. But gradually we road together and I found I could guide its flight. We slid above the dunes and circled the Tower. I thought of home. In what seemed like a second we were nearly upon the City. I told, or rather thought, to it that to know what it felt to be human we should visit my human home.

That we did. Three days ago. I saw you on the balcony. You and Mom were sitting quietly in the dark, each sipping some red wine. It smelled like that Port you had from Old Earth. Do you remember that?

Then we rose above the City skyscrapers and up into the night, so high I could see the dark Great River and the Conjoining See glistening in the light of Altluna. I could see the shard of light which is the Tower. It was magnificent. We returned to the fire pit and I could see my body sitting cross-legged, holding the bag with the rest of the incense.

The Dragon, who called its name to me as a series of frequencies that I will never forget, promised to return and become my friend. With a small jolt I was back in my body. Amazing. Now I understand why a Knight's true power comes from the linking of our minds with theirs.

I did not understand what becoming a Cadet meant. I had no understanding of what becoming a Knight meant. Now I do. I can feel it.

Greatest love,
Feo

-8- Date: 29 Eighth Month 131 ACE
From: [email protected]
Subject: Thorn appointed Captain of the Cadets!

Dad,

Great news! Thorn got chosend a Cadet Officer (DYaMeS) as NeZDYaM NeZHaDeROD (Commander of Cadets). He’s a natural-born leader and usually gets us out of as much trouble as he gets us into, if you know what I mean. He says he sees a momentous year ahead.
In another year we’ll be taking the Oath as Knights. We’ll work with our Knight Mentors, our Big Brothers. The Talent mentor that the Mage assigned to me, a Knight known as DAMCAB (Persistant Light) is likely to be mine, but neither Ice nor Thorn know yet which of several Knights will be theirs.

That Mage likes to keep secrets and set up surprises! The adventure is just beginning.

Ice's Tale The Cultures of ZOMTAT
GEO SCIENCE 103 -- MANY WORLDS; MANY POSSIBILITIES
Term Paper:  Climate, Culture and the Great Diaspora

By: Isa "Ice" Tyrvalson

Engineers, including Military Engineers, need to take account of climate and energetic conditions. Cultural and Psionic Engineers, such as the Gray Knights, need to understand how climate is related to geology is related to culture.

The North Sea is stormy all year long. That fact of nature has conditioned the culture and economy of those living in the northern latitudes of Alterra.

I write this paper as a student and a Son of the North. Theories about climate, culture and geology need to be grounded in the conditions which have been seen to occur in various places at various times in multiverse history. However, we will interpret those theories from our own conscious and unconscious assumptions.

  [I] Climate, Culture, Many Worlds

It has been a primary premise of the geological and geographical sciences that climate zones help determine how civilizations develop on various worlds. An early 21st Century (Terran Common Era -- TCE) analysis, just as humans were discovering other worlds, can serve as an example of how culture feeds back into the scholarship which defines the meaning of culture. This example is from a 21st Century Internet Archive:  Guns, Germs and Steel [1]

This three episode video series was based on an earlier book, which unfortunately has not been found in any of the old archives. However, we know the author's quest started when a tribesman from a less-developed area asked the author how did it come to pass that certain people possessed a more advanced set of tools (the tribesman called it "cargo"); in other words, why did cultures differ?

On Old Earth the existence of continents that exhibited both the benefits and limitations of climate zones conditioned the understanding of the First World's scholars and that, in turn, formed the basis for exogeography as applied to worlds such as Alterra, to which humans moved at the start of the Great Diaspora of the mid 21st Century TCE.

Three of Old Earth's continents, Africa and both North and South America, lie generally vertically, north to south, along the planet's spin axis, from far north to far south, while the main continent, Eurasia, lies east to west, significantly north of the planetary equator.

The climate zones of Eurasia, which run for thousands of miles east to west unite the continent into a few broadly connected areas while the shorter climate zones stacked north to south on the other continents tend to divide them.

So, for example, the discovery of agriculture and domestication of animals spread rapidly throughout Eurasia along climate zones, while the spread of such technologies went slowly between the differing climate zones of the Americas. It may have only taken a century for wheat cultivation to spread across Eurasia while corn cultivation took a millennium to spread in the Americas.

Climate zones have had a similar effect on the development of human civilization on Alterra and other worlds of the Human Diaspora. However, while the effects on Old Earth were unintended by humans, when the Great Diaspora began, human intention became primary, since the very Gate Technology that permitted the spread of humanity to so many worlds itself depended on the intent of the operators of that technology, based as it is on chaos magic (the magic that controls chaos).

Choosing a reality with the climate conditions desired has become an art in itself. Since literally any "where/when" is available, initial conditions -- the "premises" of the system -- become paramount. Reality Engineering is a significant part of the Military Engineering taught at the Academy; both depend on a deep understanding of climate and consciousness.

We do not know exactly how many worlds are now inhabited by Terrans. The usual phrase, "The Hundred Worlds", masks what we do not know. In the 20th Century TCE the population of Old Earth peaked at about 7 billion before declining, due initially to war, disease and natural disaster, and then due to mass migration off-world, to the current 2 billion, while the total number of humans is now estimated at over a trillion, spread across at least a hundred worlds. Alterra remains one of the least densely populated worlds with well less than a hundred million souls.

What we do know is that the complex relationship between culture and place became subject to human intention -- virtually infinite possibilities have come to define the human condition in this 22nd Century of Old Earth's Common Era.

[II] The Climates and Cultures of Alterra

We now turn to the specific ways climate has conditioned culture on this world, Alterra. There are nine cultural complexes on this world, though they are closely connected by the WorldNet and by the planetary City Gates. Like those on the Many Worlds we usually identify them with regard to their primary source cultures on Old Earth.

The Seven Sovereignties [ED eTAKYaBTAB YaROD] are:

[1] URDABCAB CaPOD -- Great Crystal Tower (mixed population)
[2] RATADHaDTAB YaKUPOD -- North Terminus (Nordic folk)
[3] CaPTACAKOD DY<>ZaMYaB -- Green Crystal Temple (Asian culture)
[4] TU>LATROT YaBTAB [LATRYaB] -- NuMarket City (part of Numerica)
[5] PZaT YaBTAB -- South City (Mediterranean/Middle East cultures)
[6] DYO<>ZaMYaB N><Z<>AD SOPOD -- Hidden Temple of the Goddess (mixed population)
[7] RATADHaDTAB PZaTOD -- South Terminus (hot climate mixed population)

Additionally there are the [8] Folk of Numerica, the independent farming townships south and east of NuMarket City, along the Conjoining Sea (ancestory: North America), and the [9] Nomads of the eastern plains and forests, who live around the Meteor Lakes (ancestory: Aryan nomads of Eurasia).

These cultural expressions have been conditioned by the geology and climate of Alterra.

To start, Alterra and Old Earth have a different distribution of land and water. While the surface of the Old Home World is about 70% water, the percentage here is 50%, with deeper seas. The land here is distributed mostly north of the equator, in one large landmass nearly surrounding the world, with the main ocean to the south and the stormy North Sea above the landmass. The narrow Conjoining Sea separates the ends of the World Continent. Some large islands occur south of the continent. Neither pole is on a land area.

Alterra's landmass is dominated by the Great Mountains of Ice and Fire in the middle of the continent while the eastern extremity is conditioned by the Great River which empties into the Conjoining Sea near NuMarket City and the Great Crystal Tower. The western end of the continent includes the Meteor Lakes, remnants of the meteor strike of millions of years ago that triggered the building of the Crystal Ley Lines and the Great Mountains.

The climate zones are differently structured than those found on Old Earth, described above. Here the climate areas are established by the mountains, the Great River and the seas and great lakes. They do not form bands as on Old Earth, but rather form broad areas of similar climates.

[III] Signs, Symbols, Geography and Culture

As the Mage has written:

NeDaTM LAMU PA<T            No sign is what it
DaTMaDaMU; ><YaD CADaTMaD LAMU              Symbolizes; yet meaning's
YE>B PA<T NeLAMU                           In what it is not!

Each World of the Human Diaspora is adorned with geologic and geographic structures which come to condition and symbolize the human culture that develops there.

For example, on Old Terra the Pyramids and the Grand Canyon come to mind. Other worlds have similar geologic and cultural artifacts. Consider the astounding spires of the Shiva Temple on the world Vedica. On Alterra the Great Crystal Tower represents this world and is its most recognizable symbol. At the same time it serves as the connecting point between the humans of Alterra and the Great Dragons.

Alterra is unique among The Hundred Worlds in that it is the only known world where two intelligent civilizations, one human and one not, coexist (the intelligent sea mammals of Old Earth have tribes, not a civilization). The makers of World Gates have always been careful to specify in the premises of the Gate that the target world was to be without competing civilizations or intelligences. The Mage, in making the first World Gate, was perhaps not so careful. Or perhaps that feature of Alterra is the result of intentionality.

This writer has spoken with the Mage about defining premises and his cryptic answer was to the effect that ‘Worlds without number and bifurcations without end allow specifying every premise desired. Intent is the key. Did you think it an accident that Alterra is Alterra?’

[1] https://www.pbs.org/gunsgermssteel/show/episode1.html

Excerpts from the Mage's Diary[1] First Excerpt: The Gate Opens
[Year One, Alterra Common Era (1 ACE)]

The Gate is opened.  Now in this Earth-Year 2035 the experiment has succeeded, after an earlier failure: Success. A WhenWhere Gate to another earth is shimmering in my alchemical laboratory. The Device, arising from Consciousness, focused through Intentionality, and powered by Frequency is successful.

The world "over there" appears to be similar to this Earth in general coloration and form. Blue sky; white clouds widely scattered; long fields of grass waving in the breeze. Ocean. River. No sign of cultural activity.

It is the intended world. The definition of the Premises led to "another earth" with differences. The most notable is that, in the distances, perhaps a couple of miles, a large shard of crystal pierces the sky. This is the world of the Crystal Tower, as promised.

Some time before the Opening the Trimantic Oracle was consulted for the purpose of defining the Opening of the Gate. First the Protectors and Deities were invoked and then Trimancy was consulted at http://www.lifespirit.org/trimancy.html

Here is the casting that replies to the Question: Where the Gate; How the Opening?
FIRST TERM (Prime Triplets) 9 - Caution Danger: NaDLABeR NODAKOD
SECOND TERM (Prime Term) 3 - NaDLABeR TaBOD   - caution now
THIRD TERM (Aspect of the Term) 2 - Indeterminate
FOURTH TERM (Subsequent Term) 31 - YaB - structure
FIFTH TERM (Aspect of the Subsequent Term) 3 - Negative
SIXTH TERM (Clarifying Root Term) 101- TUZ - month

The Third Term being Indeterminate, the random numbers were again generated.
FIRST TERM (Prime Triplets) 3 - Love Foundation: KaM YATOD
SECOND TERM (Prime Term) 1 - TUPYaT - foundation
THIRD TERM (Aspect of the Term) 1 - Positive
SIXTH TERM (Clarifying Root Term) 12- LAZ - potency

The Trimantic Sentences thus became:

Indeterminate caution now. The structure is negative for a period of time ("month").
The foundation is positive potency.

A second reading was made specifically on

How to Open the Gate

FIRST TERM (Prime Triplets) 9 - Caution Danger: NaDLABeR NODAKOD
SECOND TERM (Prime Term) 1 - NODAKO< - Danger past
THIRD TERM (Aspect of the Term) 2 - Indeterminant
FOURTH TERM (Subsequent Term) 38 - 1 / TAZL - tree
FIFTH TERM (Aspect of the Subsequent Term) 1 - Positive
SIXTH TERM (Clarifying Root Term) 86 / NUP - no

-----------

FIRST TERM (Prime Triplets) 9 - Caution Danger: NaDLABeR NODAKOD
SECOND TERM (Prime Term) 1 - NODAKO< - Danger past
THIRD TERM (Aspect of the Term) 1 - Positive
FOURTH TERM (Subsequent Term) 68 NeTaT - no time
FIFTH TERM (Aspect of the Subsequent Term) 1 - Positive
SIXTH TERM (Clarifying Root Term) 57 / CUB - gold

The Trimantic Sentences thus became:

                Danger past is indeterminate. The tree is positive. No.
Danger past is positive. No time is positive. Gold

I interpret this to mean, with regard to the First Consulting, that inderminate caution, linked to negative structure for a time results in positive foundation. The first attempt to Open the Gate was not successful, as the Oracle predicted. But the foundation is positive. The Second Consulting showed that the Danger was indeterminate, but past; now in the realm of NoTime. The Tree and Gold were the needed elements. The experiment succeeded when Gold was brought into the Device. The “Tree” appears to refer to the Crystal Tower itself, which has within chambers and levels corresponding to a version of the World Tree.

[2] Second Excerpt: Treaty [Year Ten, Alterra Common Era (10 ACE)]

The treaty with the Dragons is completed. Friendly relations are assured. Communication with the indigenous energy beings of Alterra, what we call “Dragons” but who in the tri-valued language they taught us for communicating with them (the Sacred Language) are called Air Riders (MACRODOT), has enabled collaboration. The existence of friendly Energy Beings was one of the Premise Architypes activated to determine the Jungian Synchronicity of the Gate opening to where we wanted to go. Other Premise Architypes included Expanded Psi, Enhanced Longevity, Great Fecundity and the NAP – the Non-Aggression Principle.

The Great Treaty consists of a single Sentence in the Sacred Language, which took nearly ten years to negotiate, binding both species to peaceful coexistence and collaboration, under the Great Charter which governs Humanity on Alterra (See: Appendix Three for the Great Charter and its translation into English).

ED URPSAKADLABL BODAT ED eMACRODOT ZOMTATOD YaD PYODROTLAS
The Great Treaty (Contract) between the Dragons of Alterra and Free Humanity
BODAT PYODROTLAS YaD eMACRODOT UBLAMU A< YE>LAMeR YaD YE>YORLeR H<>ZOD;
Between Free Humans and Dragons there is peaceful coexistence and collaboration;
ED eMACRODOT SATDYaMReTaMU A< TAKAK YaSOD Yad ED eTUPDeR;
The Dragons possess the Highlands and the Depths;
ED eSeNeDeR ED ePYODROTL YOBSATDYaMReTaMU TUPT ED 'URDATDYAT ZOMTATOD'
The rest the Free Humans may possess under the 'Great Charter'.”

[3] Third Excerpt: Cadets [Year 135, Alterra Common Era (135 ACE)]

-1- Cadets

We have been here a long time yet time has a different feeling here on Alterra than it did on Old Terra. We have watched Humnity flood from the distant Earth across, as we say, ‘The Hundred Worlds’ (it’s more like two hundred by now; hard to be sure) in the Great Diaspora, leading to progress and retrogress, peace and conflict, reducing the home world’s population to less than a third of its peak, while the new worlds together may be nearing a trillion humans. Not here on Alterra, as the Treaty envisions very little influx.

After 135 Alterra years (nearly a Terran Age of 185) I focus most of my attention on educating the young, while others deal with more pressing daily matters. I seek out the most psi-potent youth for the Academy at the Crystal Tower where they will learn about military and psi-engineering, martial arts, and other studies useful to a Peace Warrior. They will gain a personal relationship with a Dragon of Alterra, and the combination of Rider and MACRODOT will have synergistic potential beyond either species. They will become Gray Knights and swear to uphold Justice and Right, the Treaty and the Great Charter.

It is time that I wrote a bit about the Cadets of the Academy. I have chosen to write about one Class, the Class of 126 ACE. I remember their initiation to the Academy, ten years ago. I mostly remember three boys, Thorn, Feo and Ice who got into more than the usual Cadet shenanigans over their six years at the Academy.

Have to admit I was a bit partial to young Thorn. Besides, being the great grandson of my old friend and “Original Settlor” Daeg, the boy was cheerful and had the wholesome look of farm-bred youth. He was broad of shoulder, trim and energetic. His father must have encouraged hard work from his sons, and it showed. He had been a martial arts trainee for years, placing well in local contests. Additionally the boy had real psi talent. Daeg was from a line of powerful shamans while his mother was reputed to be a powerful Weather Witch. Thorn was exactly the type of boy I wanted in the Corp of Cadets. That he was a cousin of one of the most important Councilors in NuMarket City made admitting him to the Corp politically beneficial as well.

I try not to have favorites among the Cadets. When someone with the talents and potenal of Thorn comes along I tend to be extra hard on the boy, but, of course, every Cadet needs to be pushed to break through any limits he may think he has. Thorn was no different.

He did get into more than the usual mischief -- especially when he and his best buddies Ice and Feo were involved. I remember one incident, among many, where the Councilor’s son was also involved. I may write about that later, as we are getting ahead of the story, which starts, as it should, at the beginning.

-2- Meeting the New Cadets

I was at the City Temple, just after each of the candidates for admission had been tested by a Committee of Wizards and found to have significant psi talent. That is when the boys were turned over to me. To them it was the cumulation of several years of effort. For me it was the start of their education at the Academy. They were ‘the best of the best’ who had completed preliminary screening where they were determined to not only have talent, but to be athletic (martial arts preferred) and intelligent -- a handsome bunch of boys just entering their teen years.

The boys had their Cadet uniforms on (plain teeshirts and shorts), all in the particular darker gray used to distinguish Cadets from the Gray Knights they would become. In each case a relative, usually an uncle, gave the boy his first uniform. Each had gray canvas boots and similar gray backpacks. They looked well-scrubbed and a bit anxious.

My first step was to make them a bit more anxious and to separate them from their past. Here is how it played out.

The boys were lined up, perhaps a bit haphazardly, in the Great Room of the City Temple. Backpacks behind their feet.

This grand structure is built from giant crystals, several stories tall, surmounted by a glass dome roof. It was an impressive space and the boys looked small in it.

Everyone else, the Committee, the father or uncle who had accompanied each boy, left.

After a couple of minutes I entered and stood on the Temple podium. My voice was magnified by the podium sound system.

“Attention boys! Tighten-up that line. Let’s look like Cadets, which you almost already are. I am pleased to report you have each passed preliminary screening. As you may know I am the First Mage of the Crystal Tower, and Headmaster of the Academy. I am the final obstacle to your admission to the Corp of Cadets. Over the next couple of months we, myself, your Class Preceptor, teachers and all the Gray Knights, will test your limits. We will see how dedicated you are to becoming Gray Knights yourselves. Then you will be initiated into the Corp and receive your RaTDaBeR NeZDeROD (Warrior Belt).”

“Until then you are not Cadets. You have no right to wear the uniforms you have on. Strip. Pack your uniforms, boots too, into your backpacks. You may continue to wear your jocks. Until initiation you are “Pups” and like puppies you will need to be strictly trained to behave as we expect Cadets to behave. Back packs on. Right face! March to the right back exit door. Gray Knights are waiting there to take you to the Crystal Tower.”

-3- Flight to the Tower

I exited ahead of them and chose Thorn to accompany me to the Tower. We had a dozen anti-grav flyers, basically electric motor bikes that could float. Had the boys mount behind us, strapped in, and took off.

That seemed to surprise Thorn who had not yet spoken to me. He went “Whoa!” as the flyer climbed and curved. “Don’t worry Thorn, flyer has inertia dampeners. You can’t fall out and we can climb, descend, do loopty-loops...” Which is what I did, as the surprised youth held on.
“Sir, you know my name?”

“Of course, you’re my friend Daeg’s great grandson; nice to meet you lad. I picked you to join me on this ride to let you know that I’ve seen your record, know your family. Your uncle Jack is one of the Tower’s financial agents. Your cousin is a City Councilor. Last saw you as an infant at your Naming.”

“You, however, are really just a farmboy about to enter into a great adventure. I wanted to let you know that you’ll get no special treatment at the Academy. And don’t worry. We’ve been training Cadets for a long time. Have fun boy. And hold on, I’m going to show you how fast this thing can move. Five minutes and we’ll be at the Tower.”

We entered the Tower through the portico reserved for flyers, half way up its ten story height. Parked the flyers and got the boys into a line.

-4- Preceptor

“Boys, it’s time to meet your Class Preceptor (DYaMES, Trainer). When you become a Gray Knight you give-up your identity and receive a MaSAD NeZDeROD (Knight Name). Your Preceptor is DAKDaKeR (Hard Hitter). He is in charge.”

I always make sure to pick a big, tough-looking Knight for this job, which is essentially to push the boys through two months or so of ‘basic training’ during which they’ll form a team, get into good shape, learn how to work hard in the Tower gardens and fields, and come to appreciate the alternative to the academic work. Their schooling will start after initiation.

The boys definitely looked intimidated when they saw the six-foot-six, muscular Knight. What they didn’t know was that he was actually a nice young man who was taking University extension courses in child psychology. He was also a Black Belt – one of my ‘Cultured Thugs’. He looked the part and we needed to get these boys ready for six intensive years of academics and physical training.

I stepped back and DAKDaKeR snarled convincingly and barked,

“I am ‘DAK Sir’ to you pups! You will obey my orders without hesitation. Right face. Your first lesson is how to use the anti-grav tubes that take us from level to level in the Tower. We will stow your gear in your Class Squad Room and then I’ll turn you over to the Garden Keeper (DYOLABeSeR ZaLATATOD) since there is plenty of time left today for you to learn about weeding. Forward march!”

-5- Working

I checked in on the boys late that day. The Knight who served in rotation as Garden Keeper had the boys hard at work, pulling weeds. It was a warm day and I could see sweaty boys crouching among the plants, cloth bags filling with plants in the wrong place. Thorn seemed to know what he was doing, actually getting all of the roots out as well. I smiled at the boy who grinned back up at me. The two boys who would become his best buddies, Ice and Feo, were right with him. They did not seem to know how to do it right and each had a welt or two from the DYOLABeSeR’s well-aimed switch. Thorn was showing the other boys how to use fingers to dig deeper and pull up the whole unwanted plant.

A word about how work is organized at the Tower. The Gray Knights spend nearly all their time at continuing education (most have university-equivalent post-graduate degrees) and martial arts training, or being deployed all across Alterra, using their engineering and other training. The actual work of maintaining the Tower and surrounds, and feeding the couple of hundred or so men who are there on an average day, falls to the Working Brothers (LABeSeR KUSOD). This is their duty, with the help of the Cadets, since we want our Cadets to understand the importance of physical work. The LABeSeR are recruited from two main sources: men who want to serve in the Tower but who are not qualified to be Gray Knights and Knights who have gotten themselves into situations where we determine that they need a few months at hard labor to help them improve. The LABeSeR are ranked at the bottom of the Degrees of the Order of the Crystal Tower (DYOMaT YE>N< E DABYaB CaPOD), with Cadets and Knights above them. The Work is overseen by DYOLABeS NeZDeROD (Knight Keepers) in rotation.

As it was nearly time for the evening meal, I decided to herd the ‘pups’ from the garden to the mess hall. I called out,

“Pups! Fall in. Here, now. That means line up, in front of me. Good. Leave your weed bags in a pile. The LABeSeR will take care of them. We have some time before dinner. You’re probably hungry, so this is a good time to teach you how to march like Cadets. Then we’ll get you hosed off and take you to the mess hall.”

Training ‘pups’ to stand tall, march in unison, with identical strides, and their feet slapping the ground together is never an easy task and would take hours on multiple days. When they’re tired, hungry and sweaty the best that can be expected is to get some semblance of order. But it’s exactly when the ‘pups’ are exhausted that the training will get past their mental barriers, too tired to think, so the lesson will sink in.

These boys had Thorn at the front of the line. The boy was a natural-born leader. The others looked up to him (he was the biggest in the Class) and followed his lead. Apparently he had learned how to march at a martial arts dojo, so I was surprised at how well they did. Hardly had to use the training switch I always carried when interacting with Cadets.

By the time we got the half mile back to the Tower the ‘pups’ were looking better than expected. I led them around the side of the Tower to the service entrance where there was a hose. Great fun hosing the grime off the boys with cold water. Then I had them do jumping jacks to dry off. That probably piqued their appetites.

“Alright pups! Line up. Follow me to the mess hall level. Remember to state the level to which the anti-grav tube is to take you, so you don’t end up on the wrong level. Mess hall is Level Minus 2.”

Minutes later I herded the boys into the Mess hall, which consists of a large open room with tables facing the kitchen, with a balcony running above. Knights eat in the main room, Cadets in the balcony. I have my table up there too. I had the pups in an open area near the kitchen end. There was the usual bustling around and quiet talking as lines of Knights and Cadets in their uniforms filled plates.

“Pups! Stand at brace! That means you clasp hands behind back, feet together. Parade rest is the same, with feet apart. Keep ‘em together! Good boys. You’re learning how to look like Cadets already. You will wait here until all fill their plates. There should be some food remaining for you. Still and silent!”

Then I called in a loud voice for all to hear.

“Knights and Cadets! I present to you the Cadet Class of 126! It is up to each of us to make sure these pups are trained right and are ready to be initiated in the Order in just a couple of months. Remember the old Tower saying, ‘When you see a pup, take the time to smack its butt!’.”
That got a laugh and shortly all the Knights and Cadets were at table emptying their plates amid a quiet buzz of conversations.
Their Preceptor DAKDaKeR took over,

“Alright pups! Right face, march to the cafeteria line. Fill your plates, but if you take more than you can eat you will be punished. Take your full plates back here, sit on the floor, and eat. No utensils permitted. And I expect to see plates and fingers licked clean when you’re done. Move it!”
-6- Basic Training

As the ‘pups’ began to toughen to the rough treatment we pushed them harder, adding first a half mile, then one, and then two mile runs to their morning training, followed by outdoor work until evening. No academics. No contact with their families.

Every morning at dawn they were rousted from their Class Squad Room by the Class Preceptor and led out to the Parade Ground where all the Knights and Cadets assemble for stretching, calisthenics and chanting before showering and breakfast, regardless of the weather. The ‘pups’ were expected to keep-up. While the Knights and Cadets left the field for breakfast in the mess hall, the ‘pups’ were each given a big mug of warm oatmeal enhanced with nutrients which they had to ingest there before their morning run and daily field work.

This was demanding and both the Field/Garden Keepers and the Preceptor kept a close eye on the boys to make sure none were damaged by strict training. We had never lost a ‘pup’ and took precautions not to ever do so. I checked on their progress every day and was pleased to see them developing a real team spirit. That’s what I was looking for, so we could move on to the next stage in their training, initiation into the Order and the start of academic work, never, however, neglecting physical training which would continue to be raised to new levels with martial arts and gymnastics added.

A word about the Class Squad Room (CSR). Each Class has its own squad room which opens into a barracks area where each Cadet has his own bed and chest. But not the pups. The doorway to the barracks was kept closed and the pups had to sleep on an exercise mat on one side of the room. There were two long desks that filed two sides of the room and a dozen benches, for when their education started. Now the benches were stowed under the empty desks. After initiation they’d each have a P.A.D. with access to this planet’s World Net, Alterra Net, and from there to the Hundred Worlds Net.

-7- Developing the Team

Checked in on the pups regularly. They were getting good at weeding, spreading manure, collecting eggs, all the farm and garden work needed. The Keepers kept them hard at work. At rousting and at night it was their Preceptor who continued their training. He was sufficiently strict that the pups quickly formed a team and quickly bonded with the big Knight.

That didn’t prevent DAKeR Sir from pushing them hard. When I’d inspect the pups in the CSR I’d quietly enter and stand by the door, not interfering. The Preceptor would be training the pups, having them do push-ups, or watching him perform his martial art forms, or engaging in some team building exercises.

Early-on he gave them a lecture on feet, as I watched.

“Pups! Attention. Warriors move on their feet and fight with their hands and feet. You’ve all been barefoot for days so your feet are starting to toughen. Tonight we’re going to learn about feet. Form two rows facing each other. Sit on your butts. Extend your legs so your feet are in the lap of the pup opposite. Good.”

“Now I want you to massage your partner’s feet. Use your thumbs to press hard where the toes and foot meet. Massage the bottom of the feet. Be firm. If your partner squirms, press harder. Rotate the ankles. Push your fingers between toes. Now keep at it, harder, until I tell you to stop.
For several minutes the Perceptor and I chatted about the pups. Then it was time for them to start their eight hours required sleep.

“That’s enough pups! You did good. As a reward instead of stretching out on the mat to sleep I want to teach you about the Puppy Pile. That’s when you pups pile into the center of the mat. You see that taped square in the middle of the mat? It’s been there since you started training. You’ve all got to fit within the square. You’ll probably have to pile two or three deep. Get comfortable ‘cause that’s where you’ll sleep until your initiation. Pile now! The Preceptor’s switch got the dozen pups into a pile.

“Eyes closed. Lights off. As usual I’ll be sleeping in my sleeping bag on the mat nearby. No noise.”

My comment was,

“Good training Preceptor. I’m proud of your pups!”

By the way, notice that we intentionally misuse the word “good” to include both the moral judgment, ‘good’ and the accomplishment, ‘well.’ That is to conflagrate in the pup’s mind the ideas of ‘being good’ and ‘doing well.’ Skillful mind-control is important in any military organization.

-8- Initiation

After eight weeks we were ready for their First Initiation as Cadets (the Second would be years later when the Cadet became a Pleb Knight). We wanted to make the ceremony impressive, something the boys would always remember. Most of their parents and other relatives would be there for it and the celebration afterward.

Although the pups had been at the Tower for enough weeks that several of the regular Magic Rituals conducted at the various sacred spaces within had occurred, they had not been allowed to witness the Rites. No doubt some of them had sensed the Powers as they were all Talented.

This would be their first direct exposure to the psionic Work of the Tower. Great Dragons would attend.

The pups were not told that their initiation was about to happen until the day it did. Catch them off-guard to make a stronger impression. It was mid-morning when they were called in from the fields and hosed off. Guests would be arriving at noon; a tent for shade and food was being set up on a grassy area near the Tower.

Their Preceptor hustled the pups into the Tower and to its bottom level, to the Temple Below, for the first time. I met them there and carefully prolonged their uncertainty as to what was to happen.

“Attention! Parade rest. Welcome pups to the depths of the Tower, the Temple Below (DY<>ZaMYaB TUPOD). Here is where our Seers monitor the psionic status of Alterra.”

“This is a momentous day! We begin by having your Preceptor lead you in some stretching exercises.”

DAK Sir led the pups, mostly to relax them and prepare them to experience the Power of the Temple. At the end he sat cross-legged facing them, as they did the same facing him. I took over.

“Breathe deeply. Eyes closed. You already know the routine. As I count slowly backwards from ten to one you will fall into what the uninitiated might call ‘sleep’ but what we know to be a level of trance. Once there you will feel the Power of the Depths. This Power will come to us in the form of a Great Dragon arising. He will fill you with an energy surpassing any you have ever felt before. Opening you to the magic of the Tower. Breathe deeply. Ten...”

The Great Dragon, resting beneath the Tower, rose up the Temple and filled it with His Glory. The pups, and all there, felt the raw red potency of the Being taking on the aspects of the Temple as an Avatar of the Diety of the Depths; the Root Chakra. We all bathed in that Potency. The Dragon blessed each pup individually, opening their minds in ways that would develop over the subsequent years. Then it rose through the Tower and rode the air.

We remained in awed silence for several minutes. Then I spoke.

“Eyes opened. Stand to brace! You are now truly Cadet Members of the Order (KUPOS DYOMYaTOD). Congratulations! Preceptor, lead the Cadets back to their Squad Room. Cadets, you will put on your uniforms and follow your Preceptor outside where your families await to witness you taking the Oath of the Cadets and receiving your Belts. After that we will offer our guests food and drink while you will be on display on a platform in the tent. There will be no interaction between you and the guests. You will all retire early since tomorrow is you first day as students of the Academy.”
I could see how excited the Cadets were. Me too. I felt then that the Class of ’26 would be special, and circumstances proved me right. Perhaps I had a valid seeing.

I was not being intentionally cruel by forbidding the Cadets from interacting with their families; I was just taking every opportunity to reinforce Cadet mind-control. Voluntarily accepted mind-control is what made a powerful, cohesive organization from a diverse group of men from all the cultures of Alterra.

The new Cadets looked proud standing in thei uniforms on the lawn just outside the grand entrance to the Tower. They had been drilled by their Preceptor repeatedly over their basic training regarding the meaning of the terms in the sacred language of the Tower, PSAKaDAS.
I spoke the words which they repeated in the sacred language.

LAMa> A<P>< PYODROTL.
I am a Freeperson.
LAMa> A<PE C<>YABeS.
I am eager for higher consciousness.
LAMa> A<PE DYOMYABeS.
I am of the Order.
KaDYUP, PSAKaDLABaM<>a> A<PE DYAMaMeR YE>N E DYOMYaT YaD ED URPSAKADLABL.
Yes, I swear obedience to the Order and the Great Charter.
KaDYUP, PSAKaDLABaM<>a> A<PE LABDYAML YE>Z E DYOMYaT YaD H<>Z YE>Z eLATeR YOMPOD.
Yes, I swear service to the Order and peace to all persons.
KaDYUP, PSAKaDLABaM<>a> A<PE SOPLABER YE>BC E DYOMYaT.
Yes, I swear to keep the secrets within the Order.
DYUTC, RaDaM<>a> A<PE LAM ED ><MaKaDLABeR
Yes, I submit to be a Cadet.

Their Preceptor brought out boy-sized belts that matched the belts the Knights wore. Black woven material clasped by a silver circle. The insignia of a Gray Knight. The assembled families applauded and the Cadets led them to the food tent. In the center of the tent we had a round platform, about six feet across, two levels, and motorized so it would turn very slowly; had the Cadets stand at brace on the display while it turned. They were instructed not to speak. The family members had been told that any Cadets who broke their silence would be spanked.

Why? Because I wanted to continue the isolation of the new Cadets to further inplant the seriousness of the Oath they had just taken. After the guests left the Cadets were taken back to the Temple Below where they remained meditating for an hour before returning to their Class Squad Room to find the door to their barracks opened. They were home.

-9- School Boy Shenanigans

Of all the boys in the Class of ’26 Thorn, Ice and Feo got into the most schoolboy trouble! Led on by Thorn, but with Ice right there pushing the rules as hard as he could. Feo, with his Talent of empathetic understanding, went along for the ride.

One afternoon I received a call from Nauthez, the Councillor from NuMarket City. He had a complaint to lodge.

N: “My dear Mage, I must protest!”
M: “About what Councillor?”
N: “About the behavior of your Cadets.”
M: “My, that’s a broad accusation. I have about 75 Cadets. Can you be more specific?”
N: “It’s my cousin’s son.”
M: “Ah, young Thorn. Please explain.”

N: “Last week, my son and some of his friends had a cook-out on the river beach outside the city. Your three Cadets came to the same beach by boat from the Tower. I think some of the young ladies might have been embarrassed since your boys were clad in jocks only. But that wasn’t the problem. Some words were exchanged and our young folk felt threatened by your Cadets. They got into some martial arts stance. My son diffused the incident and your boys left. I must insist that you discipline them. We cannot have Cadets abusing our people!”

M: My dear Councillor, have no concern. I will deal with my Cadets. They will apologise to your son. If he and a couple of his friends would like it, they are invited to the Tower for lunch and apology. I will punish the three Cadets. Extra garden work and a spanking should do it. Will that satisfy you?”

N: “Of course Mage. That will be fine.”

M: “By the way, the martial stance you referenced is called a Defensive Triad. We’ll have the Cadets demonstrate when your son visits. They should never feel threatened by my Cadets or Knights who are sworn to protect.”

I called the three boys into my officer immediately. I needed to make an example of them.

Thorn led the other two, Feo and Ice in, looking apprehensive.

T: “Mage, you wanted to see us?”
M: “Indeed I do. Tell me what happened.”
I: “Happened about what?”
M: “You know what, Isa, Son of Tyr Lord!”

I: “Mage, we’d be guessing. There might be several reasons for us being here...”

M: “Saucy Cadet. But I suppose there might be a few reasons... the incident a couple of days ago at the beach, after you three took a boat without permission...”

I: “Oh, that.”
T: “It was my fault Sir. I’m the one who took the boat. And it was my cousin who caused the incident. Blame me; my friends just followed me.”
M: “As they usually do. Nauthez, the Councillor called me. He told me what he thought happened. Why don’t you tell what you think happened?
T: “Yessir! Uh, we had two classes cancelled so we had four periods free an’ it was a sunny day so we decided to do some swimmin’. Feo told us about a beach half-way to the City frequented by young folk. Well, one thing led to another, and we were there. We waved at a group of boys and girls; I thought I recognized my cousin. Then we went swimming. Later they were tryin’ to start a fire and so we volunteered to help. Gathered drift wood and got it goin’ good.”

Ice took over the explanation,

I: “That seemed to bother some of the boys. Some of the girls were giggling since we don’t have bathing suits so we were just wearin’ our Academy jocks. We didn’t think anything of that, since that how we go swimming all the time. We’re in really good shape compared to those City boys and well, Thorn’s cousin told us to put our uniforms back on. He’s older than we are and he pushed Thorn, as though to send us back to the boat and our uniforms.”

F: We immediately stood with Thorn an’ we formed a defensive triad. Then Ice showed us that he’s a good diplomat and made a joke about our jocks and told them we had to get back to the Tower. We retreated.”

M: “Well stated Cadets. That sounds like that’s what happened. However, the Councillor told me the young people felt intimidated by you. I know, you didn’t intend that. My boys did nothing wrong. You naturally took up a defensive position. I told the Councillor that. But, I need to make an example of you, and make sure they know about it.”

“Here is your punishment: First, ten hours extra garden duty for the three of you. Second, I will be inviting Thorn’s cousin and his friends to the Tower for lunch with the Knights. You three will demonstrate your Kata and apologize because the young folk felt intimidated. Apologize only for what they felt, not what happened. Third, there has to be some spanking.”

“Feo, you have a strong empathetic Talent. Time you learned how to project it, to help others feel and do the right thing. I’ll assign one of the Knights to work with you on that. Maybe he’ll become your mentor for your Pleb Year. For you this escapade is an opportunity. For your friends, however, I have to be able to trust my Cadets and Knights to obey the Rules and follow orders, since with great power comes great responsibility."
I pulled Thorn over my knees and spanked him about nine times, pretty hard. Ice got four whacks too. I told Thorn that his Greatgrandfather sent his greetings and scooted the boys out.

The luncheon for the Councillor’s son and friends went well and he seemed embarrassed that Thorn and his friends had to apologise. My friend the Great Dragon let me know he was following the aftermath of the escapade.

“What you would call a ‘tempest in a teapot’ – lovely phrase. It teaches that relationships must be tested from time to time to be strengthened. All in all, a win for you on multiple levels.”

-10- Invasion

Early in the year 132 ACE, the Class of ‘26’s Senior Year, Alterra experienced what is so far the only WhenWhereGate invasion anywhere in the hundred worlds. We believed we had failsafes built into the gate technology so that it could only be used for individual transitioners, up to a certain weight, that would exclude heavy weapons systems, but allow trade.

We did not expect to see hundreds of temporary gates opening on the grasslands south of the Tower, disgorging a few thousand of what we discovered later were NorAm’s best Marines, light tanks, field artilliary. A huge amount of energy had to be used to force the bending of reality; not the easy transit our low-power, intionality-directed Gate System enabled. Later we discovered that all the generators had burned out and large areas of NorAm were left without power for weeks. The ‘Expeditiary Force’ was doomed from the start, with no easy way home.

We did not know that on the morning of the invasion. I was called by the Seers in the Temple Below and told to look south immediately. I was able to see the temporary gates open, disgorge and fizzle-out. The only casualties that day were hundreds of soldiers who were caught in the oculuses as they failed. A tragedy; later it took dozens of wizards and witches to free the trapped souls.

I immediately issued a Red Alert. All the Knights at the Tower were mobilized, as were the Cadets. Knights around the planet were alerted and stood watch for other assaults. I stationed the boys on the inner wall of the Tower complex, with the Knights at the outer wall -- a contingent of nearly a hundred Knights were waiting before the main gate.

The attacking force began to move toward us from several miles away. They began firing salvos of artilliary and missiles. Our energetic shields held off that attack. They paused a thousand yards out.

I ordered the Knights into action, with shields up.

What happened next is hard to describe since the Knights are trained to distort time when necessary. They moved in a blur and the tanks and various other weapons were rendered inoperative. The remaining invaders continued firing shells and rockets at us, but our shielding continued to hold, due to an innovative Shield Wall, and soon all their weapons were silenced.

Then the Knights were back, by the wall. The invaders’ hesitancy escalated. Remaining vehicles were backing away. But they had nowhere to which to retreat.

It takes time for the Guardians to manifest, for our primary weapon to activate. By this point the Tower’s main weapon, E NeZLABeR, was ready to use. Let’s call it an Intentionality Cannon. Psionically powered from the Temple Below, uniting the Guardians, emitting psionic energies from high up in the Tower, the cannon could be aimed at specific material substances and structures, without harming the humans nearby. Steel, lead, spent uranium, other heavy metals were ‘vaporated’ into a fine elemental dust – all the weapons and equipment fell apart; invaders’ gear laid in useless piles, litering our grasslands. The next cannon shot was aimed at cotton, wool and synthetics. There were now several thousand naked, weaponless invaders looking around the grassland, embarrassed.

From start to finish the invasion lasted under an hour. I now had a bunch of North American troops to deal with. We herded them together. They were really surprised when several of us joined our psionic capacity and quickly grew, from the depths below, a ten foot granite wall surrounding them. Feeding and clothing all these invaders was not practical. I needed to get them back home, as fast as possible. The only way to do that was to get them to the world gates on the other side of the Great River, over the one bridge, the NuMarket City Bridge. There was a direct link to Old Terra at the Circle of Gates there. We sent messages to all the folk in NuMarket City and in the farmlands to the east and south for volunteers with vehicles. Hundreds responded.

Soon we had caravans of everything from farm trucks to elegant hover craft transporting the POWs up to the City, across the Great Bridge there, and to the gates. I made the decision to keep a hundred of the POWs as prisoners, to give the invading government an incentive to reach peace terms. We chose the youngest soldiers who were not married or fathers to hold. All the prisoners were made aware of the hostages. When the large contingent of invaders came ‘marching home again’, naked and bound, through the Terra Gate (which, you may know, opens onto the plaza at the UN headquarters in Old York City) the secret invasion could not be kept secret and the truth about its relationship to the Great Power Outage of 2122 CE was unavoidable. A few months later the Regime, which had been in power for decades, actually lost an election.

Some months later we came to the conclusion that new government was not interested in old-regime POWs. This did leave me a bit of a problem, well, a hundred of them. I solved that by breaching, a bit, my commitment to Volunteerism, a bedrock belief on Alterra. I felt I was not exactly violating the Non-Aggression Principle since they were the aggressors, so I involuntarily volunteered them for the Corp of Working Brothers.
We already had the POWs working at cleaning up the debris of their invasion, so keeping them working was what was needed. Since they were trained soldiers it took only a little messing with their minds through advanced implants to achieve a level of mind-control that solved the problem. Besides, during planting and harvesting seasons we could rent them out as squads of working manimals to the farmers to the south and east, allowing them to increase production. My POWs were kept busy, earned their feed, and a profit for the Tower. As my Dragon friends might say, “A win-win for all.”

All of the Cadets, including the youngest classes, acquitted themselves quite well during and after the invasion. The leadership of Thorn, as Captain of Cadets, should not have surprised us at all, organizing the defense along the inner wall of the Tower compound. Juniors and seniors are trained to manifest a protective psionic shield, just as the Knights do. With Feo’s empathetic Talent they were able to link their shields – they warded off a number of artilliary shells and rockets that had been fired high enough to go over the individual shields the Knights were deploying along the line of contact with the invaders.

‘Thorn’s Shield Wall’ as it has come to be known is an innovation that will be taught to future generations of Cadets. My trust in that boy proved well-founded and a decade later he has become the youngest Knight to ever manifest a Guardian Dragon, as Protector of the Depths.
Later the boys helped with the POWs and generally became more sober regarding their responsibilities. No one expected an invasion and everything was changed by it. We must be ever on guard; the seers in the Temple Below will know if anyone tries to open a Gate to Alterra and we, with the help of our Dragon allies, will prevent it.

-11- Graduation 132 ACE

Graduation is always an exciting time. We hold the annual Academy Reunion and Graduation in the late spring. This year was especially important as we had the recent defeat of the Terran Invasion to celebrate.

That included the hundred Terran POWs who we had kept busy cleaning up the debris, from their fiasco, litering our fields. Everyone on Alterra knew about Thorn’s Shield Wall. We wanted to integrate graduation, victory and reunion into a memorable experience.
Preparations for the event began months beforehand. We needed to prepared for an influx of several thousand veterans, families, notables. On a planet as sparsely settled as Alterra this would be a large crowd.

Many would be camping out for over a week, some in tents and some in RVs. The camp-out is a major part of the Reunion. A large area had been set aside, with temporary shower and latrine facilities. Closer to the Tower we had the food tents and closer still, on our Parade Grounds, bleachers, lights and awnings for the ceremonies.

We planned four events:

[1] The Annual Greeting of the Great Dragons

Our graduating Cadets and retiring Knights camp out at the Dragon-Calling Circle, a mile or so from the Tower, the night before the Greeting. They offer incense to the Dragons throughout the night. The next day they run burning torches of fragrent woods back to the Parade Grounds where the guests have gathered.

After an invocation of the Circle of Light a delegation of Dragons appears, displaying their mastery over light and form. They bless the crowd which greets them with applause. A feast is held, which the Dragons attend, coalescing into more human sized Beings. They are offered essences of herbs, flowers and the like.

Thus ends the First Ceremony and first day.

[2] A Special Victory Celebration

Likewise held at the Parade Grounds. I want our POWs to participate so we will bind them, by threes, to the lanterns that had been set up; had to import a hundred pair of “silkies” – standard military shorts so as not to scandalize the guests. The lanterns aere abou ten feet tall with electric lights that are made to look like flickering torches. We put two-foot high platforms around the posts, stand the POWs there with arms bound back and around. Nice effect; if popular with the guests will included the POWs in the remaining two events as well.
This celebration begins with a martial arts exhibit by all the Cadets, at the end of which Thorn and the other seniors manifest their Shield Wall to the applause of all.

We then have a group of Knights march in carrying the regimental flags captured from the invaders (well, since all of that gear had been vaporated, we reconstituted them from information published about Terran armies, and by questioning the POWs). The planetary High Council is present to receive the captured flags and I lead the guests in Three Cheers. It will be an impressive display! Followed, of course, by a feast.
Thus ends the Second Ceremony and second day.

[3] The Graduation of our Cadets

On the third day the Cadets are up early and in the Temple Below for a period of quiet meditation. When the guests are in place at the Parade Grounds the boys, young men really, march onto the field where all the members of the Order are present. On a long table are a dozen sets of Gray Knight uniforms.

On command the Cadets remove their Cadet uniforms and carry them to the waiting relative who had gifted them their first uniforms six years earlier.

A dozen Knights come out from the Corp and each places a hand on a Cadet’s shoulder. These Knights will be the Cadets’ Mentors during their Pleb Year, their first year as a Knight. Some of the Cadets will be surprised, others will have expected who is assigned to them.

I read the Oath of the Gray Knights, which is similar, but subtly not identical to the Cadet Oath, and the Cadets repeat it line by line.

The guests applaud. The remaining Knights, Cadets and Working Brothers cheer loudly. Each pair of Knight and Pleb step forward to the table and retrieve the Pleb’s uniform. More loud cheering from the members of the Order when the Knight Mentors clasp the Warrior Belt (RatDaBeR NeZDeROD) around the waist of the Pleb. All the Guests, Knights and Cadets go to the food tents. Later the Mentors and Plebs return to the Tower for further meditation and a tea ritual (ZaZ).

Thus ends the Third Ceremony and third day.

[4] The Retirement Ceremony for Knights completing their tour of duty.

Once the guests are in place and the Parade Grounds is filled with the Three (later, Four) Corps of the Order the retiring Knights march in. They had completed their initial commitment of 25 years of service. A few, though, had re-enlisted for a second tour; but on Alterra with such slow aging, that hardly mattered, they all looked like mature young men.

There are fifteen of them. They all stand at Brace and I award each a Silver Circle Pin, attaching it to their uniforms. In civilian life they will always wear that pin to signal to all that they remain part of the Order of the Tower.
The guests applaud.

Our Cadets provide an exhibition of martial arts and tumbling.

All head to the food tents.

Thus ends the Fourth Ceremony and fourth day. The camp-out continues for another week, with nightly campfires, visits from the Dragons putting on displays of shimmering, animated lights.

-12- The Matter of the POWs – 133 ACE

Negotiations for a peace treaty with the successor government to the NorAm regime that had attempted to invade Alterra dragged on for over a year. It was clear that the new government did not want to admit that we were holding any of their predecessor’s soldiers as POWs. They insisted that there be no mention of prisoners in the treaty.

That left me with a hundred NorAm Marines who were now my responsibility. Over the prior year we had kept them busy clearing up the remains of their invasion. Their holding facility had been improved. Within the granite walls that we originally ‘grew’ using psionic engineering we built barracks with primitive but serviceable facilities. Added a bunch of treadmills connected to our power supply. The idea was to have POWs cover their feed costs by producing power for our grid.

So we had them rotating between clean-up and power duty -- kept them in good shape and tired enough to keep out of trouble. Once we hacked their implants we implemented a full mind-control program.

I applied what we had learned over decades of training Cadets, Working Brothers and Knights to my new responsibility. The POWs were already soldiers and used to obeying orders. By the time the NorAm government decided to ignore them I had them well on the way to Total Mind Control. We had ten squads of ten POWs, each including an overseeing sergeant.

With a planetary governance system (we do not use the term “state” since there is no coercive taxation on Alterra) carefully restricted by the Great Charter, including the famous Four Negations of Coercive Authority (no restrictions allowed on belief, speech, trade and association), Alterra’s political leaders wanted no part of my problem either. They chose to ignore it too.

The little immigration that occurs to Alterra is controlled by the Charter requirement that an immigrant must agree in advance to the Charter’s terms.   My POWs were invaders and had violated the Charter, not agreed to it. They could never be “PYODROTLeS” (Freeemen) under the Charter. They were invadering violators subject to our criminal law. The most severe penalty on Alterra is isolation from civil society -- shunning.
So a couple of days after the treaty was finalized, when the POWs had returned from clean-up duty, I entered their compound alone and called them all together, including those on the runners.

“Attention POWs! Fall in!”

Within a minute I had a hundred NorAm Marine POWs lined up by squad, at attention. With my bluetoothed mic broadcasting directly to their implants I knew I had their attention.

“Stand at brace!”

After a minute.

“Parade Rest!”

They moved from ‘Attention’ (standing straight up, feet together, hands at sides) to ‘Brace’ (which is ‘Attention’ with hands clasped behind backs) to ‘Parade Rest’ (which is the same as ‘Brace’ but with feet apart). By having them do that very short drill I was asserting authority over them and putting them in the right mind state for instructions, which they heard throughout their bodies via their neurophone implants, nearly as though my words were their own thoughts.

“Pay attention to my instructions. Your status has changed. You are no longer POWs.”

I paused a moment.

“The successor NorAm government wants nothing to do with you and has abandoned you.”

I paused again.

“You invaded this world and violated our laws. As High Judge of the Tower (URLABDYaMKeR URDABYaBOD) I am entering a judgment of ‘Guilty of Crimes against the Peace’ and sentencing you to permanent involuntary servitude and isolation.”

I paused to look them over. Their mind-control training was holding. I saw a hundred tanned, nearly naked and muscular young men waiting to hear what I intended.

“Your new status is that of a ‘Manimal’ without civil rights in this society. You will be referred to as ‘it’ and not ‘he.’ You will be subject to strict discipline and penal work conditions. You will work even harder than you have so far. That may seem harsh but it is necessary to carry out your sentence and to assure that you cover the costs of keeping you, and then some. If I have to run a prison, it will be run at a profit. You need to be useful.”

“Understand that I am responsible for you and I take that responsibility seriously. I will require you to work hard and obey. I will never lie to you, though you will only be told what you need to know for the immediate task at hand. As your Commander (DYaMeS) I will never abandon you.”
“Your training and work will continue as before, but moreso. Your squad sergeants will remain in control. However, instead of being soldiers in squads with sergeants you will be working manimals in work gangs with work bosses.

“You will complete the war-debris clean up. In addition to the power runners we will train you to work farm fields by hand: plowing, planting, weeding, hoeing, harvesting. When not working our fields we will rent your services to nearby farmers. I promise you, no slack for my manimals. I will keep you very busy and hard at work. That’s good for you and will keep you out of mischief.”

I looked at the newly named manimals and could see some disorientation and confusion.

“Stay focused on my words. While you fully assimilate my instructions let’s continue your training. Squad 1 Sarge, now Gang Boss 1, here.”
The gang bosst ran over to me and stood at attention.

“Lead the Manimal Corp in calisthenics: normal reveille routine. Repeat a second time ‘on the double’ and then jog in place until I instruct otherwise.”
The gang boss started to count the reps of push-ups, sit-ups, deep-knee-bends, and jumping jacks. Ten minute work-out, followed by five minutes at the double, followed by jogging in place. Now all I saw was focus as my mind-controlled manimals assimilated their status. I had a program running into their implants that repeated their Manimal Code: Work, Obey, Silence (LAB, DYAM, SOM).

After a half hour I stopped the exercise. I had a hundred sweaty and exhausted manimals – the best condition for further mental training.
“Brace! As your Commander, I am proud of my manimals! As your Commander I will continue to train your capacities. As your Commander I will never abandon you. As my manimals you will give me your all and moreso. Repeat in your minds, assimilating my instructions, ‘Work, Obey, Silence!’ and it is so.”

“We’re going to do something new today to test your stamina, your obedience, and how well you are responding to training. As you know we have thirty-three power runners in this compound. You all spend lots of time trudging on them. Instead of one manimal bound to each we’re going to put three of you on each to see how much we can increase your output. Although we call the devices “power runners” they are so heavy, due to the weight of the iron and copper generator coils, that most of you can only walk laboriously on them; good exercise and good manimal management.”

“With three to a runner we should be able to get more speed. The coils are capable of much more speed. Let’s see what you can do. Remember, if the power needle on the runner falls below the quota needle you will receive the usual electro-jolt reinforcement. Move quick to avoid discipline through electro-feedback. I will initially double the quota for each runner. With three to a runner you should be able to do better than that. We will continue to push quotas higher as we experiment with your capacity. When on the runners do not think, just listen to the input through your implants and push as hard as you can. Make me proud of my manimals.”

The gang bosses organized the runners while I went from device to device doubling the quota setting. I left to the sound of two hundred prisoners’ feet slapping against the runners, falling into time with each other. A couple of hours later I returned to see much more exhausted and sweaty manimals who had doubled power output, just meeting the quota I had set, due to the jolt feedback system. I was pleased with the results, but, in keeping with their training, did not say that. Rather I had them fall-in again and told them,

“For your first day as manimals you did not exceed my expectations. That is not good enough. You must produce more power to cover your costs and then some. There will be a ten percent reduction in your second feeding today and the same tomorrow morning. Work hungry. That should show you I am serious about your hard labor servitude. No slack for my manimals. Learn to work as hard as I require and I might find ways to reward you. Return to your barracks for your required rest. Tomorrow is the start of the rest of your bondage. Dismissed.”

*****

As I write this Diary entry six months have passed. While my main focus is on my Knights and Cadets, I do pay attention to the Working Brothers and now to my Manimal Corps. I inspect them at least a couple of times a week. The extra manpower has made life easier for the men living at the Tower complex. Well, maybe not easier for the manimals who are certainly working harder than when they were POWs. Their intense mind-control training is working well. We get a full twelve hours or more of hard labor from them every day (half day on Tenthdays), with more than triple the power output. With their required eight hour rest period that leaves just four or less hours for exercise, feeding and cleaning, squad bonding through sports like volleyball, also sparing with each other and with the Cadets. My Cadets love sparing with the manimals. Keep them all busy.
When sent out to work neighboring farmers’ fields we have them hauling equipment wagons at a fast jog (about 5 miles an hour). That’s a steady pace that will not exhaust them before they reach their work site, often an hour or two away. In most cases the farmer will rent a squad or two for a week or two, so we’ll have to send their feed along with them. The farmer provides water and a dry place to sleep, usually in a barn loft. The manimals work 15 hour days in the fields, regardless of weather. The Tower gets paid usually in a combination of cash and produce.
To reinforce their mind-control training I’ve devised some Cadence Calls for them to use while jogging, not entirely unlike those used by the Cadets. Here they are:

Yo ho yo, manimals must do the work.
Yo ho yo, beat dat quota or be a jerk.

We don't know but we've been told
Workin' manimals' mighty bold.
DYaMeS sets for us our task
We just do it -- fo' nothin' ask.

Yo ho yo, manimals must do the work.
Yo ho yo, beat dat quota or be a jerk.

We don't know but we hear tell
Manimals sweat from dawn t' dark.
Dat belt do whack but we don’t yell,
Dat belt do smart so we do bark.

Yo ho yo, manimals must do the work.
Yo ho yo, beat dat quota or be a jerk.

We don't know but they do say
We must work th' live-long day.
Gotta push to make tha' quota
Or get th' whacks on th' scrota!

Yo ho yo, manimals must do the work.
Yo ho yo, beat dat quota or be a jerk.

We don't know but we believe,
DYaMeS tells us every eve,
If we falter we'll get a smack,
Manimals do an’ get no slack!

Yo ho yo, manimals must do the work.
Yo ho yo, beat dat quota or be a jerk.

The Manimal Corp has become a regular part of Reunion Week. We display them along with our Cadets and Knights. One the the guests’ favorites is the annual reenactment of the Battle of the Shield Wall, basically a fireworks display with Knight, Cadet and manimal dioramas, performed at night: the highlight of the annual reunion.

The Manimal Corp became such a successful part of the Order that I decided to expand it. We had always had a secret Gate back to Old Terra. The NorAm authorities never knew about it.

With the decades-long collapse of that society there were always large numbers of homeless men on the streets of its derelict cities, even with the involuntary labor program the NorAm authorities had initiated. It was an easy matter to send teams of Knights back to Earth and pick up young homeless veterans who were given an opportunity to volunteer for the Corps. They were approached by our Knights who appeared, and were, authoritative and charismatic.

“We’re from a special program to help homeless vets. You can have a second chance in the best corps anywhere. It’s not easy, but if having purpose and brotherhood again is what you want, volunteer and come with us.”

We weren’t exactly clear on where they would be going, but the volunteers seemed happy to be off the streets and useful again. After a couple of months of basic mind-control training and hard work they fit into the Manimal Corp quite nicely, more than doubling its size over time and adding some genetic diversity to our underpopulated planet.

Another example of what our Dragon partners would call a ‘Double Win.’

-13- The Youngest Guardian – 143 ACE

I knew Thorn was a special young man when I met him nearly twenty years ago. Of course he got into the usual hijinks as a Cadet; maybe more than the usual. He was popular among his peers and became Captain of Cadets (DYaMeS NeZHaDeROD) during the year of the NorAm invasion. It was his innovation, known as Thorn’s Shield Wall, that became a symbol of our resistance to the invaders.

I did not expect that his Talent for seeing potential future bifurcations before they happened would be have been so pivotal. He explained that as the invaders were approaching he saw there was a powerful dividing of the bifurcations just minutes ahead. On one timeline rockets get over our Knight’s shields and impact among the out-building of the Tower complex, resulting in casualties and, shortly, hand-to-hand combat. The invaders would be defeated, but at cost. The other timeline included an innovation, a Shield Wall, a combining of psionic shields into a synergistically more powerful defense. He said he saw his empath fellow Cadet, Feo, linking together the senior Cadets, allowing them to meld their Shields into a high and curved Wall that deflected the invaders’ weapons, allowing us the time to deploy our main weapon, the Psionic Intentionality Cannon, and easily defeat the invasion.

Thorn’s Talent of seeing the right bifurcation point led him rapidly up the ranks of the Knights after his Pleb year. By the way, his Knight Mentor was his Class’s Preceptor, DAKDaKeR.

The rank of Guardian is the highest rank in the Order (but for the URLARD DABYaBOD -- High Lord of the Tower). There are but six Guardians and each is linked to a Great Dragon and to a Spiritual Architype. Each such Architype can be named in many different systems of thought, but on Alterra they are named in accordance with the tri-valued Sacred Language, PSAKaDeS (literally, the collection of true words). Thus, the Protector of the West is the Power of the Mother Goddess, She of Many Names: in the Sacred Language Her Protector is N><Z<>AB (the AB ending means ‘the potency of’ and N><Z<> is the most Sacred Name of Goddess). Each has its color, sound and symbol.

We call upon the Guardians every day, for protection and for inspiration. They figure prominently in all of the temple rituals of the Great Tower and hold the psionic energies of the world’s crystal lay lines under their safeguarding.

Thorn became the youngest Knight to manifest a Guardian, in his case the Great Dragon of the East, C<>AB, the potency of Altsol (the star around which Alterra orbits). An existing Guardian cannot retire until the Dragon of that Direction chooses a successor from among the Knights. We were surprised when that happened, as we had no indication in advance, unusual in itself.

I was, of course, happy for Thorn as it is a high honor to be chosen. -- proud of my boy.

The Great Dragon explained to me that Thorn’s Talent needed to be encouraged, as he and others of his generation were proving that the longer humanity dwelled on Alterra the more powerful Talents are becoming, generation by generation. The Dragons want to see how far Thorn can see. As do I.

The Dragon's TaleThe Great Dragon Speaks
From 26 December 2020 Transmission / www.GeneralBertSpeaks.com

"Who/what/where/when are these dragons? .... at the level of imaging and imagination... guardian beings of enormous strength and power with a treasure to guard and bring to fruition, to hatch. ... That these powerful beings are unfettered by requiring a single representation and that of a flight of Dragons is perfect. It is not exclusive. They are many things, you might say if they had actual shapes, they would qualify as Shape Shifters. But they are energy and, as such, can be as dragonish as they wish. It is a perfect representation."

Herein I, the Progenitors of the Dragons of Alterra, known by Humans as the Great Drgon, discourse upon several matters of interest to both Dragons and Humans. The story of the First Contact initiates my presentation.
That is followed by my description of the Treaty which binds Humanity and ED eMACRODOT to peaceful coexistence. The further sections are about the Protectors, that extraordinary collaboration of Gray Knight and High Dragon, and an introduction to the Rituals of the Tower and the Temples, showing their connection to the Greater and Lesser Mysteries.

[1] First Contact

Speaking to communicate is an interesting phenomenon.

One needs to manipulate the molecules of the air (or other medium) to form pressure waves that can be received by the Other as a meaningful sign. For our human friends that is just a matter of forcing air through specialized sounding tissue and out toward the Other to whom One wishes to communicate.

For us eMACRODOT -- the Dragons of Alterra -- the matter is more complicated. It is all a matter of matter, after all -- something that we manipulate with some difficulty. As Beings of pure energy we have little need to do so.

Thus, when the humans came to Alterra we were at first perplexed. These were Beings that did not originate in the natural processes of evolution on this world, but came here through a WhenWhere Gate intersection of this world and another. Was that their Intent? Was it an accident, unintended? The Beings surely had some intelligence. There were patterns to their behavior. We could perceive the electrical activities of their life processes, sufficient to suggest some sort of consciousness.

We understood how to perceive matter through our nearly full-spectrum capacity to perceive our environment and soon we realized that the air pressure waves coming from the Beings had informational content. We discovered that the humans spoke to each other. That led us to realize that, though their structure allowed direct mental communication they hardly ever used what was to us the normal means of communication. How astounding we thought among Ourselves.

Deciphering the human vocal signs allowed us to initiate communication.

This One must state the humans were surprised when we first did so. Later the humans told us that they had noticed our energy trails through the sky when we traveled but thought them a natural phenomenon.

How surprised they were when we descended from the sky and coalesced before them. We had to coagulate matter to form a voice-producing structure and then spoke, using what we came to understand they called a “camp fire.” We initiated the act of communicating, “We greet the travelers from across spacetime. Welcome to the world of the Energy Dragons.”

The burst of energy from their surprise was most delicious and taught us that these Beings might hold some interest for us.

And, as it has become, that is so.

[2] Treaty

The Wise One, the humans tell us, inscribed the Treaties that define Reality on his Holy Staff. One-Eyed Wotan, the Allfather, saw clearly that the Laws of Nature were as much agreement as dictate.

The game of negotiation with the humans was informative and entertaining. We Dragons love to negotiate. It is a high art form for us.

The humans were confused and bemused, and then suspicious. But eventually they understood that our life in the Air was not a threat to their life on the surface of the world. Nor theirs to ours. And then we learned that there were values we could trade. Mutual benefit sealed the negotiations, as that must for any successful agreement.
A single sentence is the Treaty, elegant and powerful. Lovely the results of negotiation.

We possess the Highlands. The humans agreed to respect the land by not delving into the depths, once we showed them that there were those among them who had the Talent of Attracting, allowing them to bring forth the materials they needed without disrupting the telluric energies upon which we depend.

They offer us incense, which we greatly love; they might consider us addicted to certain aromas... and we offer them knowledge of where various minerals can be easily coaxed to the surface. We bless their crops with our energies and share our world with them.

If the truth be heard, we find human behavior entertaining; much more so than the other beings they brought with them, such as cows and horses. Goats are funny. Felines are interesting; we respect them. The canines have a special feeling for their humans that we can appreciate.

[3] The Protectors

The Six Protectors of the Tower are a good example of how humans and dragons can cooperate -- and when cooperating, how their potency is enhanced. Beings of differing capacities can achieve greater when cooperating, as each is able to focus on the benefit it offers. Thus, negotiated collaboration brings both sides together in benefit.

As beings of spirit and energy eMACRODOT do not easily interact with matter. As beings of spirit, energy and matter humans have limited access to the basic energetic structure of reality.

But when united, both species of consciousness have access to wider realities. And so it is with the Protectors. Six senior Gray Knights are tasked with protecting the Great Crystal Tower. Working with them six Great Dragons form the psi-energetic shielding that surrounds and protects the Tower. The humans call this process "Riding the Dragon" (MACRODaMeR). We call it "Coagulating with a Freeman" (YORLABaMer PYODROTLOD) -- always a matter of perspective!

The six Pairs that are One are as follows:

  1. The Protector of the Depths: K<>HUT (Red Shield) – HUT
    2. The Protector of the South: PZaMAB (Green Shield) – PZ
    3. The Protector of the West: SHeMAB (Blue Shield) – EM
    4. The Protector of the North: YaKAN< (White Shield) – AN<
    5. The Protector of the East: C<>AB (Yellow Shield) – NYA
    6. The Protector of the Heights: Z<>AB (Purple Shield) – <>

Each Knight has a tone to call the Dragon to him. Each Dragon has a potency that is added to the pair. Together, they form a Unity and Potency that is beyond each species alone. This deep connection is recognized as a special gift of the Potency the humans call Goddess and we call Mother. As the poem states:

Dragons, Eris' gifts -- eMACRODOT, RaPYODeR N><Z<>ADOD --
From Kundalini: Masters YE>M K<>TODT: eLARD
Ride pure energy. MACRODaMUD ZATOTD ZADOZOD.

And furthermore, we understand:

Power dancing weaves              DaMLAP ZAMTODTOD YODMOMLABU
Earth-Sky energy,   TAKAK-MACZ<> TODT,
Manifesting here and now. ZAKaZeR TATeB YaD TeB.

And so it is...

Here is the Ritual of Protection: http://zomcrystaltower.weebly.com/protection-rite.html

[4] The Rituals and Mysteries

ED eZaM YaD ED eZaMLABAS ZADY<>OD
The Rituals and the Sacred Mysteries
YE>N< E DABCAB CaPOD YaD ED eDY<>ZaMYaB
Of the Crystal Tower and the Temples
YE>C ED eZaMLABAS YODaDOD YaD SeMOMOD
With the Greater and Lesser Mysteries

Here I describe two inter-related areas of spirituality wherein the worlds of Humanity and ED eMACRODOT (the Dragons): The Rituals of the Tower and Temples and the Mysteries.

There are a number of Rituals set forth in the Appendixes of the Shaman’s Song which support the psionic, physical, metaphysical and spiritual essence of this World. These Rituals are performed at the Great Crystal Tower n their most complete form. Thereat Dragons join with the Humans to enact the Act and confirm the Energy. Ritual is where the energetic reality of ED eMACRODOT and the physical/energetic reality of Humans interact, raising the energetic structure of the Humans and grounding the energetic energetic structure of the Dragons.

The specific forms of the Rituals is less important than the collaborative effort of the participants of both intelligent species. The results, however, of the Ritual will vary based on the form thereof. Here are just a few examples:

PSADAS YE>N< ROPaMeR – Book of Opening [Initial Opening of a WhenWhere Gate]
ZaMBROLAB YE>N< ZaLAB – Book of Release [Foregiving and Releasing Ritual]
PSADAS SOPOD YE>N< ZAKaZ - Book of Manifestation [Manifestation Ritual]
PSADAS YE>N< eZaMACRODaM – Book of Passages [Ritual for Passing this Life]

There are, additionally, rituals to celebrate the seasons and the significant occurrances among the Humans: births, marriages and the like. These are the lesser rituals suitable for use a home and among close associates. The formal greater rituals are performed at the Temples and the Tower, with certain rituals, such as URZaM, the Great Ritual which empowers the Knights and the Tower, reserved for that one place.

Similarly the Greater and Lesser Mysteries, based upon the Rituals and Sacred Texts, are performed only at specific locations, linked through the Crystal Ley Lines of the World. Two of the Mysteries of which it is permitted to speak are the Lesser Mystery of the Dragon Rider and the Greater Mystery of the Shaman Journey.

The Lesser Mystery of the Dragon Rider
E ZaMLABAS SeMOMOD YE>N< E MACRODeR

While this Mystery has been conferred upon wizards and shaman not directly associated with the Crystal Tower, the main recipients of are Cadets in the final year of their training to become Gray Knights. The Mystery is always performed at the ZAKOR MAHRODYaMPSTATOD [Dragon Calling Circle] which is beyond the walls of the Great Tower. The recipients experience communion with a Lesser Dragon and remote journeying. The ritual includes meditation, ritual dance [ZADaMLAPeR] the experience of the remote journey by the recipient while in intimate communion with a Dragon.

E ZaMLABAS YODOD YE>N< E ZaMACRODaMeR
The Greater Mystery of the Shaman Journey

This Mystery may be seen as a further development of the Lesser, but that is not exactly so; it may be granted to recipients who have not experienced the first. It is always presented in the Temple of the Pyramid at the pinnacle of the Great Crystal Tower. Similarly to the Lesser it includes ritual, trance, motion and an experience of oneness with the Dragons, the Tower, the World: the Whole.

It may also be granted to recipients who are not persons with psionic Talent, in which case it is just an honorary Degree, to recognize the contribution of the recipient to the culture and civilization of Alterra. The recipient experiences, to the level possible for one without trained Talent, the Great Vision of the Cosmic Being.: the Whole.

These are deep Mysteries which may not be revealed in detail but which powerfully maintain the collaboration among Humans and Dragons, on a world hospitable to both...

Afterword

The Crystal Tower                                                E DABYaB CaPOD
Vibrates with my shaman’s songs      SaDUMaMU YE>C eSADaTHaZ ZAMaMeSOD
Through all eternity.                                           YE>T Z<>NeHaD YOMPOD.

Here is the Ritual of Protection:
http://zomcrystaltower.weebly.com/protection-rite.html