(NANNA)
I’m not going back to Earth.
I’ve already decided that, but Sam won’t find out until she reads this short story. And she definitely needs to read it because a light is about to click on.
I don’t think my granddaughter has put together the clues of her parents’ deaths yet, but she will soon. Once she really starts thinking about “Mafia Moms” and “Time Sleuths” and how we’re writing this down for the public, it will all snap in place.
Sam’s a writer, and she isn’t the first in the family, so I’ve enjoyed watching her grow into it. I read her web serial Moons Dancing and loved every word of it because I saw the heart and soul of a child I love poured into its pages. Her book showed me how much she needed someone to love her and understand her—who wasn't her grandmother.
Sam’s a lot like me, of course. She feels deeply, loves with her whole heart, and keeps to herself, not relying on much of anyone.
That means she’s been mostly alone her whole life.
Until now.
Sam is finally with someone who truly understands her, and I can tell she’s on her way to becoming everything I saw in her from the time she was tiny. When I see Sam thriving with Cora, I’m at peace. I know she’s finally in a good place, and that means I can let go.
I’ve held on for Sam, hoping this day would come. I lost my son and his wife in a devastating starliner crash seventeen years ago, and that’s not something a parent ever recovers from.
My husband died a couple of years later, so I’ve known deep grief for a very long time. Mostly I don’t notice my age much.
But I do feel . . . worn.
Perhaps you’re wondering why a woman in her eighties is talking about the end of life at the beginning of a collection of short stories called “Time Sleuths,” and I'll tell you.
Because I’m reading love stories written by Sibsil Creed. And I’m seeing them through the eyes that I have: a woman who's lived a long time, who has lost and grieved while raising a granddaughter, and who's now wondering if it all meant anything.
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Who wrote Known Cosmos Books 1-2? Two old men: Peydran and Ren Crieve-Madrano, so I am quite sure that they looked back over the lives they lived and wanted to find meaning in them too. They did that by telling stories about the people they loved, and they did it well.
But there’s more than simple stories in these books; there's clues.
And that’s what I’m digging to find.
What would two men who loved family and friendship want to hide in these books, and why?
I can’t help but notice the similarity between Ryst and Nayth’s story and my own granddaughter’s. Cora lived for years dreaming of Sam without knowing who she was.
Nayth Carmidee did the same thing. He wrote love songs for the woman from his dreams, and they’re sprinkled all throughout Book 1. Why?
Nayth wasn’t a typical man. He came from a wealthy and politically powerful family, but that’s not all. He was Talented—in a quiet sort of way.
I want to make a point of something I noticed reading these stories. One thing I am quite confident of: Nayth used his public life to find Ryst Nova. And he did that because he was guided by a supernatural sense—an intuition—and following that inner guidance is how he found the woman of his dreams.
Coraline Maycroft did something so similar it is uncanny. She dreamt of Sam for years. Then she poured her heart and soul into music.
No, she didn’t go into politics or build a financial empire like Nayth, but she did take to the stage hoping that being in the public eye would draw Sam to her.
And it did.
What did Nayth Carmidee do after he found the love of his life? He fulfilled his term as Minister of Hospitality, but he walked away from politics and retreated to Shurwinn with his wife. Right here on this very property.
All he wanted in the world was a quiet life with the woman he loved. Wealth and power meant nothing to him.
Naythe is the person I’m studying as I read Book 2, and he’s a man I would really like to know. When I read between the lines of his story, here’s what these books are showing me: people have dreams.
Something they want more than anything else.
And if they want to see those dreams come true, they need to do something outlandish. Something outstanding. Live differently than everybody else.
Put all their cards on the table, and take big chances. Live big and be unconventional. Do everything unexpected, and do not conform.
That’s what Nayth Carmidee did: he lived his life from intuition, not logic.
And it worked.
Contrast Nayth to what we think of as the typical Galactic Minister. Someone who has to live in the public eye and conform to certain expectations. Tow the line. Follow the status quo. Do what is expected of you.
Repeat a script day after day, year after year.
Status quo is everything. Maintain it or lose face.
Galactic Minister of Hospitality Nayth Carmidee burned the script in favor of his dreams and gained the world.
What do I take from all of that?
If we want the life of our dreams, we should “tell the story we want to tell, and tell it our way.”
That’s one of Nayth’s song lyrics, and I think it is the core of Ryst and Nayth’s love story and guidance for all of us.
If you want a status-quo life, do what is expected of you.
If you want the life of your dreams, tell your own story the way you want to tell it.
That’s a sentiment with weight to it, and it’s something I can stand behind. And honestly? I think it sums up whatever is coming next.
I don’t know if I’ve lived my whole life that way. Maybe for too much of it I just went along with everyone else, but I’ve got very good reasons for changing, no matter how damn old I am.
When the truth comes out about how Sam's mom and dad died, I know my granddaughter will do something bold, and I won’t stop her. I will cheer her on every second.
I plan to be there watching the world go up in flames, if that’s what it takes.
Novicius in Arte Medica A Novice in the Art of MedicineMedical School is a Warzone. Ashrahan was failing. Then, the System woke up.
Quote: Synopsis: Sleepless nights, borrowed notes, and caffeine. When exhaustion drags Ashrahan to the edge, a silent system awakens, transforming patients into interactive lessons and textbooks into living networks of surgical precision.