3

(Muranaday)

Tirry Jelham looked out her window as the sun tried to shine through the morning fog. A few determined rays illumined the old glass floats sitting on her patio as decoration. They reminded her of her grandmother who inherited them from her fisherman father.

Tirry’s eyes drifted to the water, as they often did. She noticed how the sun’s rays glinted off the small whitecaps in the harbor. A moment later, the golden glints had disappeared as the dull, gray clouds blustered in and gathered over the island, blotting out the sunrise. It looked warm, though she knew it was quite cold.

She looked out to the rough sea, and wondered what it was like over the water, where Yewan had come from. Then, her eyes scanned the city until Tirry could see the roof of the old newspaper building, jutting up unattractively on the other side of the marketplace and near the beach. She thought of the man who had slept on the floor there last night.

“But he doesn’t even think of me!” she scolded herself with a sigh. Oh well. She would work with him and get this election done. Maybe he could use her help in other ways. The island would be better for him being there regardless of any personal feelings or lack thereof.

A message buzzed on her PCS link. “Please meet us down at the Complex in half an hour,” Jenna had sent.

Tirry ate a quick breakfast and hurried down to the appointed place. She looked at the forlorn building and wondered whether to wait outside or to try one of the old doors.

“Come in!” Yewan encouraged, opening the door with a smile. “I see Tle-sun and Jenna are right behind you.”

“Thank you,” Tirry said with a smile of relief as she came in out of the freezing damp.

Jenna shuffled in as quickly as she could behind her, Tle-sun at her side. “It feels like it wants to snow,” she said to the others as the door shut behind them.

Tirry nodded her agreement. “I hope it clears up for the elections,” she said.

“Does it often snow here?” Yewan asked.

“Rarely,” Tirry replied. “The ocean normally keeps it warm enough to avoid it settling. That and our strong winds, anyway.”

The abári nodded in acknowledgment. Then, he cleared his throat and began again. “Welcome!” Yewan greeted. “Welcome to the new A’mara Complex in Gaskarii. Please come with me as I give you the grand tour!”

The others followed. Tirry was eager to see his vision for the forlorn building.

“This foyer will become a large, well-planted atrium before you reach the front desk,” Yewan explained. “There will be plenty of seating as guests await the A’mara they wish to speak to.”
He took them “inside” the relatively dark building to where there would be meeting areas, dining areas, a full-commercial kitchen amongst many other rooms.

The pieces began to form a picture in Tirry’s mind. The man had vision, she realized.

Next, Yewan took them upstairs which looked just as rough as the downstairs. That fact did nothing to dampen Yewan’s spirits as he showed them the first larger room.

“This room looks like a good classroom, don’t you think? There are a couple more just like it,” he said enthusiastically. “Across this corridor is the recreation room. We will start off with a padded sparring area. Every A’mara needs to know how to wield a shaze!”

Tirry nodded, trying to visualize a room she had never seen before. It sounded like a safe and fun way to learn combat skills though.

Yewan took them upstairs to the next floor.

“Private quarters up here. As you can see, there’s a place for me… I don’t have anything here yet, though, just my two totes. Then, there’s a place for you two, Tle-sun, Jenna, – even if you have a few more kids before we can expand. There’s even a few more rooms for any recruits we may have. Plus another floor above this! Mostly for storage, I guess, but if we start running out of space, we can move people upstairs. It will handle a lot of expansion for our needs!” Yewan said. “There’s even this beautiful atrium! I guess it handled equipment for many years, but caved in at some point. I plan to turn that into a feature. Great for getting in tune with the leya!”

Tirry liked what she’d seen and heard so far, but there seemed to be a glaring omission in her mind. “Do you have any space for outdoor gardens or playgrounds for Jenna’s baby?” she asked.

“Uh… I hadn’t thought too much about that,” Yewan admitted. “I suppose we could always utilize the rooftop. That’s a normal thing for A’mara Complexes. What do you think about that, Tirry?”

Tirry sighed, but recognized the opportunity. “I can help you design that if you’d like,” she offered.

“That would be useful,” Yewan accepted with a smile. “I’d show you the rooftop right now, but it’s a bit blustery today.”

Jenna smiled meaningfully at her. Tirry wondered what Jenna’s point was, but smiled back.

“I guess that’s all I have to show you here this time. Next, we need to go and talk to the governor,” Yewan directed.

The foursome descended the stairs and left the skeleton Complex.

“So, the A’mara are using the old newspaper building…,” Wolfkin told Ydia, as he watched them on city surveillance videos.

Ydia typed a few things on the holonet terminal. “Seems they’ve had the governor’s approval already,” she reported.

“The governor will live to regret that decision,” Wolf determined. “The Terrenden Freedom Party will win this election and the opposition within the gubernatorial offices will be enough to stall anything the governor wanted to accomplish in her role.”

“I think we want a unit in her office to find out what the A’mara want with her,” Ydia said.

“I don’t think it’s necessary. We already know why the new abári is here. The particulars will be in the news and it doesn’t really matter anyway – our plans are already set and will work no matter what their current strategies are. No one will expect the difficulties this election will have!” Wolf said with a grin.

“Why don’t you just run for auxiliary governor yourself?” Ydia asked.

“Because I’d rather run for the main office next year,” Wolf answered. “I will need a new name though – no one will vote for a Wolf...”

“But wolves protect their pack,” Ydia replied. “Maybe you can take advantage of that fact. You shouldn’t change your wonderful name for politics.” She smiled at him.

Wolf kissed her appreciatively as his PCS link began to buzz. He answered the familiar code.

“Belmara is worried that your over-confidence will cause problems for you. Are you able to handle your task?” the Curator’s scrambled voice asked.

“I received the goods as scheduled. They are already in place. I will be double-checking on Rinday to make sure they haven’t been moved. I will also be conducting a last-minute meeting on Rinday night. You are welcome to attend,” Wolf invited. “You will see that this election is in good hands.”

“For your sake, I hope you are right.”

NEXT CHAPTER

Other Chapters of this set

Acting the Part - chapter 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9

Building on Promise - Chapter 1

Maps and Guides

continents of Alacantis and Kranisis (five maps)
continent of Almara (five maps)
countries of Kri'enden and Yezi'im (four maps plus "other places")
characters, pronunciation and glossary

PLEASE CATCH UP!	LINKS TO BUY!
	Birth of the Neví 829 T.C.E. It is a tumultuous period of Terrenden history. As is all too common, there are those who wish to profit from the misfortune of others. Some of these come together in a new "charitable organization" and step on the toes of the notorious Uugli. Combine this with draconian new measures to combat pollution and Terrenden has a situation ripe for a power struggle.
	Rebound of Power: 850 T.C.E. Collection of Romance Terrenden is being terrorized by a previously underestimated Neví who, through the mysterious “Curator,” have been controlling elections all over the planet. In this collection, we meet some interesting women. Iyva - a homeless teenager in Irola whose untrained power leaves her close to death; Marc’la - a breeder of prized caballus in Kasago whose heart lives in the past; Zukie - an abused widow whose heart is afraid to try for future happiness; Jenna - an elections assistant manager and masseuse who has a prejudice against A’mara; Kami - a chola student in Varkevand who has been assigned to protect Ardin, a man who has his own reasons to distrust A’mara.
COMING SOON	TO AN EBOOK STORE NEAR YOU!!!
	Brighid's Blood 2006 and 1200 B.T.C.E. Katja and Rachel are so desperate for love that they cast two love spells one night. But the Guardians do not consider spells "fun", but rather as cries for help from the very depths of your soul. Certainly Katja and Rachel could not have possibly imagined where these spells would take them!
	Rise of the Neví - 830 T.C.E. The Neví begin their rise in power with the completion of several large housing projects that seem totally charitable, but also hide a great evil within. The draconian measures brought in the previous year has caused major distress throughout the world, perfect for giving the Neví a further foothold on the Terrenden stage. Will the A’mara, now removed from the Council of Peers, be able to shut down the Neví?
	Acting the Part - 851 T.C.E. Collection of Romance The Neví have infiltrated the Terrenden Freedom Party. Dr. Jarly is on the run and the Curator still dominates the Terrenden stage. Famous actor, Derick Aiden has released his Neví expose film and now the Neví want him dead... In this collection, we meet more interesting women. Kauri - a simple receptionist who doesn’t realize one of her wildest dreams has come true; Tirry - an elections manager who is always the bridesmaid and never the bride; Zara - a chef who has all but given up on finding love for herself; D'zani - who isn’t even looking, but has to chaperone her more vulnerable roommate; Soala - an heiress who is expected to marry, but refuses to marry someone she doesn’t love; Moxara - one whose past griefs have locked away her heart. We also get updates on some of the lovely ladies we met previously.

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Lori Svensen
author/designer at A'mara Books
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Building on Promise - Chapter 3 - A'mara Books

3

Other Chapters of this set

Maps and Guides