The writer gives life to a story, the reader keeps it alive.
After leaving Farokh’s desecrated grave, Inajda showed Alexand more horrific crimes conducted by the Amanojuko. Posing as tourists with different pseudonyms they are back inside the walls surrounding Russia, outside a child breaking centre for Lord Anderson’s Haernyara army. (Featuring Ichitumbu Jalhavi. See Issue 34 Amanojuko part 2)
Katherine is woken by a familiar voice, after a long journey to reunite with Alexand. This issue is dedicated to my dad who died 19 years ago on 2nd December, a day after my 21st Birthday. My dad was a very clever and talented man and I constantly miss him. This is for you Dad. My stories and my world are dedicated to you. You died before I was old enough to know who you were. I will try to find you in my stories, to go to places far away from this world, to search for you. Maybe one day I’ll know you again. Until then I’ll keep writing. I’ll never forget you. (Happy Birthday to Alexand and Heyem, who were, or will be, born on 2nd December 3966) I have started a personal blog called, Unbound Boxes Limping Gods Behind The Writing, which you are welcome to read. CLICK HERE for next chronological story.
Katherine and Alex sit in an army carriage, along with Heyem and Farokh, heading back to Saskatoon Military base. CLICK HERE for next chronological story.
Alexand wakes up in danger, after sleep walking over the edge of a cliff. CLICK HERE for next chronological story.
It is the night before Alexand’s ship is due to set sail back home to India, but she can’t sleep. Although the inhibitor is slowing down the progression of her symptoms, Alex is getting night fevers and experiencing hallucinations. CLICK HERE for next chronological story.
Abouna Panak stands in his office listening to a recording, which has been handed to him by a familiar man, (the Guild Master’s General) who had tapped Katherine De Somme’s apartment. (CLICK HERE for next chronological story)
Katherine and Alex went to see a research scientist involved in diagnostics for ancient (and extinct) diseases. (Her name is Dr Bhati and she is also working for Field Marshal Panak. Her laboratory is inside the secret Christmas Island hideout the resistance have acquired.) CLICK HERE for next story in the series.
After being taunted by her identical twin sister, (Anastasia) who isn’t really there, Ancille has been taken for some ‘time out’ by her mother, Alexand. Alex believes an adventure may be a temporary remedy to the voice in Ancille’s head. (Ancille was left deaf when her brother, Sam and sister, Anastasia were taken by The Amanojuko and has problems with memory, due to her injuries. Her mother Alexand does her best to help her daughter recover in the years afterwards) This story is dedicated to Lee J Tyler from The Point Of The Quill, who requested an Ancille story. Thank you, Lee. (CLICK HERE for next chronological story)
Antun and Inajda are given food by their rescuers, (Xan Medani and Edith MehXian) and although relieved to have escaped the trail which killed their parents, both are in severe shock. (CLICK HERE for next chronological story)
In the years before the arts were put inside “The Bad Thing Box,” there were artists and dreamers, musicians and opera singers. Edith MehXian was one of those artists. From the age of seventeen she sang amongst the finest opera singers in The Chinese Hall of Excellence. She came from a poor family, but her skill was so great that she won a scholarship and became one of the most loved singers in the whole of China. This is the story of her final performance. The day her dream ended. Edith was a perfectionist. She wanted people to remember her, flawlessly. (This story is dedicated to one of my childhood heroes, Elizabeth Sladen, who will be missed by many people, some of whom didn’t even know her, but grew up loving Sarah Jane Smith.) Edith MehXian is Alexand and Heyem’s paternal grandmother. CLICK HERE for next chronological story.
Anastasia was stolen from her family when she was five, and forced to live as a concubine. From the age of fourteen she has produced children for the Amanojuko Lord, Ichitumbu. The Amanojuko are a race of immortals who have the ability to regenerate. They are no longer human, but Anastasia’s mother, Alexand Merek’s blood, is poison to them and can turn them into ‘What isn’t’. Amanojuko scientists are using Anastasia to attempt to find a cure for the poison in Alexand Merek’s bloodline. Anastasia has no concept of death and therefore no concept of murder. “What wasn’t” is an Amanojuko term for human and “What could be” refers to the potential for Anastasia producing an Amanojuko child. So far she has failed and her husband isn’t pleased. This story also mentions Anastasia’s mirror twin, Ancille Merevija. CLICK HERE for next chronological story.
Abouna Panak’s life is going to change more than he can imagine. He has been left an orphan at the age of ten, but has no time to grieve for his mother’s loss. After he discovered his mother laying in the kitchen, with a suicide note, he was greeted by a very dubious man. Abouna has no other living family. His mother never told him why. The man in the balaclava isn’t responsible for his mother’s death, in fact his mother seemed to trust him. Who is this Guild Master’s General, and why would Abouna’s mother wish for him to travel with him after her death? CLICK HERE for next chronological story.
After the murder of her father, and the disappearance of her brother and sister, Ancille Merevija must rebuild her life, with her mother, Alexand. Alexand was on a military mission and returned to find two of her children stolen, her husband murdered and Ancille left for dead. Ancille was badly injured and lost her hearing. When Ancille was strong enough, Alexand took her daughter to her sister, Heyem’s house, to hide from whoever destroyed their family. CLICK HERE for next chronological story.
Heyem Merek has run away from her former life. Her childhood, spent in poverty and her teenaged years in military correction. She is well educated and proud of her achievements. If only her identical twin sister, Alexand would allow her to forget about her past, completely. Things would be a lot less complicated and painful. (Artwork on the wall in drawing 2: by Frida Kahlo, “My Nurse and I.” 1937) This story also features Samuel, Ancille and Anastasia Merevija. CLICK HERE for next chronological story.
The Guild Master’s General is a mysterious man, who appears throughout time and place. Not much is known about him, apart from the fact he has created a lot of chaos in the lives of many. This story also features, Alexand Merek. CLICK HERE for next chronological story. A Spanish version is now available, translated by Hernán Jara Droguett.
Inajda Rekaya (Ee-n-eye-da) is seventeen years old, but has joined the army to support her husband, Eric and twin Daughters, Alexand and Heyem. She doesn’t realise that her decision will not just save their lives, but change the future of her family. Special Thanks to Imran Malik for helping me with translating English to Hindi. (The Hindi reads, “It’s open!”) This story also features, Katherine De Somme. CLICK HERE for next chronological story. A Spanish version is now available, translated by Hernán Jara Droguett.
Juba Apfvarzian needs to forget his past. He spends a lot of time taking drugs and drinking with his best friend and fellow drunk Alexand Merek. They met decades ago on a floating asylum ship for the criminally insane. Juba had a wife, Lucy and a son, Ayo, before he went to the asylum. When he was released, he discovered that they had both died of influenza, and he was alone. He and Alexand met up again after her release and discovered that they had a lot in common. Alexand had also lost her wife, Katherine to an unknown virus and her husband Jarad to an unbeatable war. Her son, Sam and daughter, Anastasia had been stolen when they were children. Alexand’s surviving daughter Ancille has grown up and Alexand and Juba spend a lot of their lives trying to run away from bad things. This is one of those days. (A Spanish version is now available to read, translated by Hernán Jara Droguett.) CLICK HERE for next chronological story.
Katherine De Somme is thirteen years old and has been forced to join the army, (by her father Georges) after accidentally killing her younger sister, Lali, in a chemical explosion. Her parents had high expectations of her, but her need to live up to their high standards has resulted in devastation for everyone. Katherine loses everything and everyone, in one horrible night. (A Spanish translation is now available, by Hernán Jara Droguett.) CLICK HERE for next chronological story.
Jarad Vijay has spent the past four years, bringing up his son alone, after his wife, Alexand, was taken and placed in an asylum for crimes against the military. Once released she woke from a catatonic state. Six months have passed since she woke. Jarad hoped her recovery would enable him to rebuild their lives as a family. Unfortunately, things aren’t that simple. (Jarad and Alexand grew up together as children. They were forced into the military at a young age. Jarad left, but Alexand remained a soldier. Their lives drifted apart until a series of events brought them back together. They were married after Alexand was widowed. Jarad believes she is still grieving for her dead wife, Katherine De Somme. He is very much in love with her, but this further separation in the form of Alexand’s imprisonment, has done little for their relationship. Alexand is very traumatised by her ordeal inside the asylum and Jarad doesn’t know if he can help her recover from it.) Trivia: Why has Alexand got metal fingers? Answer: Her fingers were severed by a samurai sword, during a mission as a young woman. (See issue 9:) The sword bearer was a man dressed in a black balaclava. He appears throughout time and place. People come to know him as The Guild Master’s General, but know little about him. (A Spanish translation is now available, by Hernán Jara Droguett.) CLICK HERE for next chronological story.
This story is set seven months before issue # 1: Alexand Merek, (a week after her release from an asylum). Samuel Merevija is only four years old. His mother was taken from him and his father when he was a baby, but now she has been brought back to their family home, after spending four years in a floating asylum ship. Samuel doesn’t understand why his mother won’t speak. He has made some special things for her to try and bring her back to his world. (Characters from left to right are: Samuel Merevija, Jarad Vijay and Alexand Merek). (A Spanish translation is now available, by Hernán Jara Droguett.) CLICK HERE for next chronological story.
Images, story and characters, © Cheryl Moore
Eldenath Balsara is an orphan. She doesn’t know who her father is and her mother was put in ‘The Bad Thing Box’ for being ‘evil’. She has a new mother, who is a matron in The House of Plenitude and Mirth. Eldenath has to un-learn the Bad Things taught to her by her old mother, like reading big words and looking at paintings and singing in the shower and listening to music. (See issue: 17) She is about twelve years old here. (A Spanish translation is now available, by Hernán Jara Droguett.) CLICK HERE for next chronological story.
Images, story and characters, © Cheryl Moore
Anesidor Sumian dreams of escaping from a gradually shrinking world and the confines of a disapproving society. Her story begins with a wish and is set over a century before her first appearance in my series of novels. (A Spanish translation is now available, by Hernán Jara Droguett.) CLICK HERE for next chronological story.
Images, story and characters, © Cheryl Moore
Alexand Merek has been released from a floating asylum. She has just woken from catatonia. This story is set fifty years before her first appearance in my series of novels. (A Spanish translation is now available, by Hernán Jara Droguett.) CLICK HERE for next chronological story.
Images, story and characters, © Cheryl Moore
