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science fiction genre

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Flashes

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2

Even in her current condition, the power of Shalyn's mind  couldn't be totally blocked. But her parents had never told her who she was, where she had come from. Or the hope riding on her. Could she discover the truth within herself before the Yannoneth Hunter found her?

     "She's had a severe blow to the head. A major concussion. I don't want to alarm you, but there's just no way of telling how long she'll be in the coma, or even if she'll ever regain consciousness. I'm sorry."

     A doctor's voice obviously. I wondered who they were talking about. Silly me, why not just open my eyes and find out? I did. At least I thought I did. The angle was kind of funny. Like I was looking down on the room they were in. A waiting room. I could see my dad and mom talking with the doctor. Dad was holding Mom. She was sobbing. Dad was trying not to cry.

     A memory seemed to drop into place. Skiing with friends. A fall. A rock. Oh...

The Yannoneth Hunter Segrineth became suddenly silent. He stood completely still in the corridor of the Center. His companion knew enough not to move or speak. No distractions would be tolerated. Segrineth had sensed a new eddy in the g'ru'tnok. An Awakening of course. But not like any he had encountered in the past. There was little of Yannoneth in the feeling, but there was more than just humanity. The feeling flickered out. Not long enough to get even a general location. But he was aware now. He would be ready next time...

Hmmm. Okay, so it's me they're talking about. Good to know I'm not dead. Coma huh? And an out of body experience to boot? Cool. Well, sort of anyway. Shouldn't I be panicking right about now? There was a nagging little something tugging at the back of my head. I decided to follow it.

      "Yes Shalyn?" I liked my Guide. She was always willing to help me sort out the challenges that I had mastering the g'ru'tnok. Her patience was amazing. "And why shouldn't I be patient? We have, after all, all the time we need. Or choose. Why should we hurry? You are the first of Danaerea to be born in aeons without the d'na'tnek. We are so dependent upon the ancestral memories in our genes that it is impossible for us to understand your experience. Hard for you to understand us as well I think."

I blushed. "Broadcasting my thoughts again, huh? Sorry. Yes, it is hard Chensholah. I seem to have all of the other abilities people have, but I have no memory. Well, no memory besides my own that is."

"And so you must learn each skill on your own, without the knowledge of your ancestors to guide you. That is something no Danaerean, even delving into the oldest of the d'na'tnek, can remember having done. Which means that as you learn so too do we. This is a unique and wonderful thing."

"You wouldn't think so if you were the one who just crushed an Ishnock vase by using enough g'ru'tnok to lift a bale of marnick feed." I sighed

The images faded. What was that? That couldn't have been me. Could it? And what the heck was Danaerea? Or g'ru'tnok?

     I was back in the waiting room with Mom and Dad. The doctor had left. Dad was trying to reassure Mom. "Shalyn is strong Mary. She always has been. You know that. She'll get through this. We'll get through this. We'll set up round the clock bedside watches. You, me, my brothers, our parents, her friends. She'll never be alone. She may not be able to tell us, but I know she can hear us. I can feel her. She's going to wake up."

     Mom hugged Dad hard and smiled through the tears. "I can feel her too. I didn't want to say it because I thought you'd think it was just wishful thinking. But you're right. We have to make sure she's never alone. It's so strange. I only half believed what he told us years ago. And now, here we are. At least we know what to do."

Huh? What? He? He who? ...

     I was lying back in the sweetest, deepest heather I had ever known. High overhead the full moon glowed in the sky, so bright that the stars were dimmed. Almost too bright to make out the lights of the Project where g'ru'tnok was channeled from Danaerea to Yannoneth. As it had been for tens of thousands of years. Danaerea's gift to its children. Yannoneth's lifeline.

It was an invisible lifeline of course. But I could sense it. A great ribbon tying two worlds together across space.

     "Will you stop paying quite so much attention to that big ball in the sky and pay a little more to me?" I turned at the teasing voice to look into the eyes of my companion, TorN'ree. He was cute, and he was an accomplished lover. Which of course made sense when you had an endless number of experiences to draw on.  I leaned over and kissed his nose, rolled back to stare upward again. "Why don't you see if you can find some way to distract me", I laughed...

Segrineth was annoyed. He'd sensed the Awakening several times now but each time he thought he had it located, he found himself at a dead end. He could tell that it was a female, young, even by human standards. And powerful. A valuable addition to the Yannoneth cause. If he could find her. Someone was interfering...

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2