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Season 1 - Winter

Cell - 2www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of CellsCells1. Edge of the Spiral1. Winter2. Spring3. Summer4. AutumnGeantraiThe Joy/Happy StrainArtist – Dave Stotts / Cell – St Patrick

Cell - 3www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of CellsUniverseMilky Way GalaxySolar SystemPlanet EarthDear Borrower/SubjectThis is the launch of ‘Edge of the Spiral’, being the first ‘Scroll’ of the Ultimate Chronicle, ‘Cells’. From the Hallowed Archives of the Cybrary…Cybrary 'evokes' a new Adventure...As the Lender/Providerthe Librarian, will invite youthe Borrower/Subjecton a Unique Virtual JourneyWhere you will choose your ownPilgrimage through Cellsthe Ultimate ChronicleAcross Time (Once, Now, and Soon)Across Space (Solid, Liquid, and Gas)An idea, a line cast into the VoidNow you will walk it like a Tightropea thin border between Fantasy and Realitybut will you reach the Endings...!Yours faithfullyThe Librarian – Lender/ProviderNavigateDedicated to Michael ‘Soldier’ O’Neill1890 - 1968Please Visitwww.cybrary.shopFor the Full Multimedia Version of ‘Edge of the Spiral’Video, Audio, Narrationlinks across Time and Space

Cell - 4www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells1.Cloaked in curling golden mistSits the lonely FoolIn a shroud of faded greenAt the centre of the poolFeet below the surface splashingRipples pulsing silver-blueIn his hand’s he cups a flowerStrawberry scent and creamy hueThe Sun it rises rusty-redSplaying through the treesHis shape reflected in the waterBlack Book upon his kneesBeginnings/Winter

Cell - 5www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of CellsBeginnings/Winter2.The cover he it slowly turnsWith slender tapered fingersSwirling characters upon green leavesAnd upon each word he lingersLords of War tore that landThe tyrants of the WestWith hearts so black and crimson handsThe stealers of happinessThe bombs blew up the cemeteriesAnd the dead gave up their gravesCities burned and crumbledThen passed beneath the waves

Cell - 6www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of CellsBeginnings/Winter3.At last the storm was endedSilence swooped and darkness was completeAnd Man the pride of HeavenToppled from his rich and golden seatHis own hands he did musterTo build the tomb that swept his world in fireAnd now he stares in wonderAs sad peace burns upon the funeral pyreA cold wind blew his ashesNone watched as they passed through the skiesNone that is save the Old ManHis patience taxed by base man’s foolish lies

Cell - 7www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of CellsBeginnings/Spring4.O they all go to the dark he criedWhose beard was long and greyAnd the world will wave goodbye tonightSo night had conquered dayThe Old Man turned and left his watchHe saw fit to leave Man to his fateAnd the air was filled with the scent of smokeAnd still sad peace burns on flames of hateThree figures stand upon the bankKnives of steel they wieldBut the Fool has not seen themFor tears his eyes do shield

Cell - 8www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of CellsBeginnings/Spring5.Reaching softly for a smileThe Fool continues to readof the Worm that came from beneath the groundTo plant the evil seedFrom the twilight land the dark ones cameThrough the holes in the snowOn the slant-eyed men and blue-eyed boysThey dealt a deadly blowGorged upon the white man’s fleshThey rubbed their hands in gleeThey built their kingdom in the EastWith tall dark symmetry

Cell - 9www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of CellsBeginnings/Spring6.Then upon that place a darkness fellAnd Death stalked the nightThe screams of the dying filled the airAs their bodies were set alightHer green fields now blackened ashesMother Earth lay down to dieBut a new hope came one morningOut of an amber skyThey were hailed as Gods and MessiahsAnd with the dark lords they went to warBut they were not the Second ComingFor they had not been before

Cell - 10www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of CellsBeginnings/Summer7.They were just another life formFrom a dead star far awayFor a new home they came searchingAnd here they would stayBeyond the sky the White-One watchedFrom inside the glaring EyeShe had seen this game a score or moreAnd she echoed a bitter sighThe battle bellowed its furyAnd the ice began to moveAnd a cold wind came upon themBoth wing and cloven-hoove

Cell - 11www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of CellsBeginnings/Summer8.The waters they were frozenSnowy Owl cut the nightWith talons bared it toreThen winged off out of sightThe golden Sun shone once moreAnd the Earth grew fresh a-newThe trees were filled with birdsongAnd the rivers sparkled blueElfin folk walked with MenAnd joy their hearts it filledGrowing merry on springs sweet vapoursSilver castles they did build

Cell - 12www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of CellsBeginnings/Summer9.Then Twelve Dancers came amongst themAnd guided them in peaceThey gave them only happy daysLove and life and feastIn sacred grove’s they would gatherAnd by a fire they would talkDreamy nights and sunny daysAnd lush green fields to walkThen as before a dark enemySprang up in the EastAnd from Hell’s Black AbyssCame the snarling Beast

Cell - 13www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of CellsBeginnings/Autumn10.The Twelve they came togetherAnd made a solemn vowTowards the sky they turned their headsIt was their decision nowI’ll be the Scythe that cuts you downI’ll be the Flame that burns youI’ll be the Wind that blows you awayI’ll be the Light you turn toThey built a Tower for her to staySo tall and dreamy-fairThey went to tie the mortal knotsBut drew the FOX out of its lair

Cell - 14www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of CellsBeginnings/Autumn11.Three Mog’s beside the swampSpread about the shoreOne was taken by the mireAnd an Orm another toreBut the third stood his groundAnd put an arrow in his bowHe stretched the cord and released the dartAnd then he turned to goThe Fool stopped awhileFor upon the storm to rideThe shaft of wood ripped the airAnd took him in the side

Cell - 15www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of CellsBeginnings/Autumn12.The Fool withdrew the bladeAnd toppled from the moundHe hit the silken poolNot uttering a soundThe Book lay on the waterFor the beasts of night to preyBut a black hand broke the surfaceAnd snatched it clean awayThe shade of night had fallenAnd a strange sound could be heardLike a bell in a distant towerThe Echo of the Songbird

Cell - 16www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells“Succouring”Assistance and support in times of stress1. Winter/UsingArtist – Djadthu / Cell – The Helical ModelArtist – Michael Flatley & Jean Butler / Cell - Riverdance

Cell - 17www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of CellsCloaked in curling golden mistSits the lonely FoolIn a shroud of faded greenAt the centre of the pool1. Jan 1922Artist – Eimeer Quinn / Cell – The VoiceArtist – Ava Anuna / Cell – Fill Fill A Run

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 18www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells1. Jan 1922 – Ireland, Lough Currane1.Snowflakes Dancing fleeced the fields of Island Earth,as a crimson spider stretched its legs over the edge of the World,clawing its way into a silent sky… Just the dawning of another day.Airborne but Earthbound, a fog in spiral motion flowed.Blown by chilly winds, frozen to the back of an icy ridge, as a mightygrey wave, in stillness hung.In the verdant cradle of Sneem, where, in summer, the lush hillsundulated like a sea of emerald waves, Michael O'Neill surveyed hisdominion over iron and fire. Now however, it was winter…There, in the rural town of Sneem, Ireland, Michael, bent steel to his will,the glow of his forge casting shadows that danced like ancient spirits onthe walls of his workshop. A skilled blacksmith and former soldier, hehad already fought in two major conflicts, and two more were yet tofollow, like the ghosts of memories he wished to forget, and instead

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 19www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells1. Jan 1922 – Ireland, Lough Currane2.spend his days forging cooking utensils, and farming equipment for thelocals.On April 13th1912 he had boarded the fated Titanic in QueenstownCork, along with his younger brother Jack, but that’s a tale for anotherday…However, as for these mighty conflicts :-World War 1 The Great War - July 28th 1914 – November 11th 1918The War of Independence - January 21st 1919 - July 11th 1921Though he was yet to enlist again in two more Wars :-The Irish Civil War - June 28th 1922 - May 24th 1923Then much would happen in those 'tween years. Not least was thatMick and his wife Mary would be blessed with eight children. Five girls

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 20www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells1. Jan 1922 – Ireland, Lough Currane3.and three boys.1924 - Mary (May), 1926 - Kathleen (Kitty)1927 - John (Johnno), 1929 - Michael (Mick1930 - Julia (Sheila), 1932 - Patrick (Paddy)1936 - Eileen (Nelly), and 1938 - Beasey (Bridget)Then came the war to end all wars...World War 2 'The Emergency' - September 1st 1939 - September 2nd1945He was a tall, broad-shouldered man with a rugged appearance, Michael'spiercing blue eyes were windows into an ocean of determination. Blackhair, flecked with silver, crowned his head, even though in 1922 he wasjust 32 years of age, and a stern, yet kind heart beat within his chest.Those who knew him, knew well the melancholic air that lingered

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 21www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells1. Jan 1922 – Ireland, Lough Currane4.around him since the wars, as if an unseen spectre whispered tales ofsorrow into his very soul. Yet, life in Sneem had brought a measure ofpeace to Michael, quieting the relentless storm within. He actually lived on afarm called 'Bunnakilla' just eight miles to the West of Sneem, though hisforge was in the village.As twilight settled upon the land, painting it in hues of lavender and gold,Michael would often visit the local pubs, (Sneem a village of just 250people, had nineteen pubs), seeking respite from the weight of his thoughts.There, in the warm embrace of camaraderie, he would share stories ofbattles long past with friends who sat by his side, each nursing a pint of ale.The sombre tales they recounted were punctuated by the haunting echo oflaughter, the bittersweet symphony of those who had survived the crucibleof war. that carriedThis pattern was to repeat after each of those three great conflicts.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 22www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells1. Jan 1922 – Ireland, Lough Currane5."Ah, Soldier Neill," called out a friend one evening, raising his mug insalute,"tell us again about that time you charged headlong into enemy fire."The words seemed to float through the thick air of the pub, mingling withthe scent of burning tobacco and stale ale, as Michael hesitated, his gazedistant. He offered a weak smile, and with a voice that carriedthe weight of a thousand unspoken regrets, he began to weave thetapestry of his tale once more."Twere a day much like any other," he sighed, "a cacophony of bullets andscreams, the reaper's harvest ripe for the taking...““There were twelve RIC men, that beat me with their sticks, put me in threepairs of handcuffs, and rode me to Cork.” His voice grim. “T’was there theythrew me in a boat bound for Hell’s Gates… Spike Island….” Mick paused.“I twisted off those shackles, and punched holes through that wooden hull”.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 23www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells1. Jan 1922 – Ireland, Lough Currane6.“Then I swam to the shore, never to look back! I knew not the fate ofthose woebegone policemen. Seven full weeks to Dublin, hiding in bogsand ditches, trusting no none, the hunger and damp gnawing into mevery bones! There to take my passage to Wales…” Mick’s voice trailingto silence.As Michael spun his story, the others listened intently, their faces a blendof reverence and sorrow. They knew well the cost of such memories, forthey too had paid their dues in blood and tears. Thus, they gathered inthis dimly-lit sanctuary, seeking solace in shared pain, an oasis ofunderstanding amidst the desert of a world untouched by war.And so it was that Michael O'Neill found a semblance of peace in thequaint town of Sneem, where the rolling hills whispered lullabies ofsimpler times. Yet, fate, ever capricious, would soon cast its shadowupon him once more, beckoning him into a realm where reality dancedhand in hand with the fantastical, and the lines between life and deathblurred like ink on a rain-soaked page. For unbeknownst to Michael, a

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 24www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells1. Jan 1922 – Ireland, Lough Currane7."mysterious figure awaited him by the shores of Lough Currane, onewhose presence would irrevocably alter the course of his destiny.New Year's Day, 1922 dawned like a timid sigh upon the greying sky,its first light stretching languid fingers across the stoic visage of LoughCurrane. The air held a crystalline silence, as if the world itself stood onthe precipice of a momentous decision, poised between the echoes ofyesteryear and the whispered promises of the morrow.Michael O'Neill, his heart heavy with memories long buried and woundsstill raw, sought solace in the stillness of this day, it was to be a solitarypilgrimage to the water's edge to cleanse his soul and face the comingyear with renewed resolve. There, where the verdant embrace of thehills met the shimmering expanse of the lake, he would stand, lost inquiet introspection."Another year gone," he muttered to himself, "and yet the ghostsremain."

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 25www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells1. Jan 1922 – Ireland, Lough Currane8.His words, carried away by the gentle caress of the wind, wereswallowed by the vastness before him, leaving only the rhythmiclapping of the waves to bear witness to his pain.As Michael's gaze wandered across the bleak beauty of the landscape,it fell upon an island nestled amidst the cold embrace of the lake, itsrocky visage wreathed in tendrils of mist.And there, perched upon a throne of stone, sat a figure so outlandishand fantastical that it seemed to have sprung from the pages of someancient mythos, a being whose very existence defied the mundanereality that tethered Michael's weary soul.Michael O’Neill, or more often ‘Soldier’ Neill, as he was known to bothfriend and foe alike, broke that wave and stepped from the mist, gazingout over the white valley below.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 26www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells1. Jan 1922 – Ireland, Lough Currane9.He rubbed his eyes several times as the sight that met them was...well, ‘Wrong !’.For below him was the vast Lough Currane.Not far from the shore was the small rocky Church Island.A figure sat there cloaked, and cross-legged.But, he actually appeared to have four arms… The ‘Fool !’.The Fool, for indeed no other name could do justice to the enigma thatwas this four-armed apparition, surveyed the scene with an air ofdetached amusement, his eyes gleaming like a Sapphire and a Rubyamidst a sea of stars. However, in the centre of his forehead blinked athird Emerald eye.The stranger sight, was that of three caped figures, spread out,

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 27www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells1. Jan 1922 – Ireland, Lough Currane10.approaching the Lough.They had the appearance of huge slimy grey-green frogs.They all carried drawn swords, glistening in the sunlight.But the largest, in the middle of the three, had a great bow strungacross his back... ‘Mogs !’."By all the saints and angels," Michael breathed, his pulse quickeningin the face of this surreal tableau, "what manner of sorcery is this?"Yet, even as the words slipped from his lips, he knew that to turn awaywould be to deny the very essence of what it meant to be alive - theinsatiable curiosity, the unquenchable thirst for adventure that haddriven him through countless battles and endless nights. And so it wasthat, against all reason and logic, he resolved to aid this strange beingand face whatever challenges lay ahead. However, this stranger

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 28www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells1. Jan 1922 – Ireland, Lough Currane11.occupied a place in his mind, a memory of a great engulfing tragedy,but Michael could not grasp this elusive butterfly."God grant me strength," he whispered, steeling himself for the journeyinto the unknown, "for I fear I shall need it ere this tale is done."With a final glance at the world he once knew, Michael O'Neill steppedforward, his heart a cauldron of trepidation and determination, andcrossed the threshold into a realm where dreams and nightmaresdanced upon the edge of eternity.And so it was that, with the weight of ages upon his shoulders, MichaelO'Neill cast aside all doubt and fear, and charged headlong into thefray, his Blackthorn Shalalie Hammer held high like an avengingangel's sword."Come then, ye foul abominations!" he cried, his voice thunderingacross the lake, "and taste the wrath of Soldier Neill!"

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 29www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells1. Jan 1922 – Ireland, Lough Currane12.Foolish maybe, but Mick was already striding down the snowy hillsideHis Blackthorn Shalalie Hammer swinging wildly over his head, wailingas were he a manic Banshee.As he raced, he saw the figure on the island raising one of its left armsand one of its right.The ‘frog’ to his left, was sucked into the snow-topped bog, like a greatbrown mouth just swallowed him whole.Beneath the surface of the Lough on the right, a monstrous blackshadow undulated to the shore.The ‘frog’ to that right, turned away from the Lough, distracted by Mick’swild battle cries.Big mistake, the Worm rose up behind the ‘frog’, like a giant Cobra, andsnapping, bit him clean in two.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 30www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells1. Jan 1922 – Ireland, Lough Currane13."Mark my words, lad," a voice whispered from the depths of memory,the echoes of a hundred battlefields resounding in the silence betweenheartbeats, "when the hour is darkest, and the tide of fate has turnedagainst you, that is when the true measure of a man is taken."The final ‘Bullfrog’, as it were, continued to approach the Lough.The figure on the Island stood, opened his cloak, and raised all fourarms.Mick was still too far away, as the ‘Bullfrog’ let loose a great blackarrow. Striking the figure on the Island, who plunged into the pitchwater.As the ‘Bullfrog’ turned to leave,Mick was just three strides from him.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 31www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells1. Jan 1922 – Ireland, Lough Currane14.He swung his Hammer in a huge circle, hitting the beast a bone-shattering blow beneath the jaw, popping his head clean off itsshoulders, like a cork.“Three Points!”, cried Mick, as it arced out into the Lough."Your courage is commendable," The Fool murmured, his tri-colouredeyes had locked upon the approaching menace, "but I fear we haveonly but awakened the beast.""Then let us see what manner of reckoning it shall bring," Michaelreplied, bracing himself for the onslaught that was surely to come, butdid not..."Indeed," The Fool agreed, a faint smile touching his lips as heprepared to face his destiny, "for it is in the crucible of conflict that ourtrue selves are revealed."

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 32www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells1. Jan 1922 – Ireland, Lough Currane15."Alas," Michael thought, as darkness threatened to claim him, "whatcruel fate has brought us to this sorry pass? What hand has guided oursteps to this dance of death upon the very precipice of oblivion?“"Your bravery, noble stranger" The Fool gasped, even as the life ebbedfrom his body, "has not gone unnoticed. Remember this moment, for init lies the seed of hope - a hope that shall one day blossom intoredemption.""Redemption" Michael echoed, his thoughts adrift upon a sea ofshadows, where dreams of loss and sorrow mingled with the faintestglimmers of hope. And as the final light of day faded beyond thehorizon, he knew that whatever lay ahead, he would face it withcourage, determination, and the indomitable spirit of a warrior born.Like a dream that had lost its way, the dying sun cast long shadowsupon the lake's shimmering surface. Lough Currane murmured itsmelancholic song, oblivious to the two wounded forms by its edge,

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 33www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells1. Jan 1922 – Ireland, Lough Currane16.locked in the throes of desperate struggle."By the gods, I will not let you perish!" Michael O'Neill vowed, his voicescarcely more than a whisper.Mick could see the Fool face-down on the surface… still clutching theBlack Book.In an instant he was in the water, dragging the body to the Island shore.It was only then that Mick realised he too had been wounded.But he could not comprehend it.There was a three foot leathery rope, embedded in the middle of his chest.The ‘Mog’, (as that’s what these ‘frog creatures’ were called), had a long

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 34www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells1. Jan 1922 – Ireland, Lough Currane17.barbed prehensile tail, that would, of Its own accord, defend its host intimes of stress and peril.Filling its prey with venom.That day, Mick had been that prey.Mick was lucky, as the tail had detached at the force of his blow to theMogs head.So, there was little time for the poison to enter his body, but the woundwas deep.The Fool was awake…The Mogs arrow had pierced his heart.Fortunately the Fool had two more !

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 35www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells1. Jan 1922 – Ireland, Lough Currane18.Together, they dragged each other to the Beehive-like Cell, at thecentre of the Island, inch by agonizing inch, Its ancient stones stoodsentinel against the encroaching darkness, promising sanctuary fromthe unseen terrors that slithered through the gloom."Speak, enigmatic being, of these portents you allude to," hedemanded, exhaustion creeping into his voice, even as his eyesdanced with shadows cast by the last vestiges of daylight. "For I findmyself adrift amidst chaos unbidden, my soul burdened by a decisionwhose weight I cannot fathom.""Ah, Soldier Neill," The Fool replied, their breath laboured, but theirwords still laced with cryptic wisdom. "In seeking to save one life, youhave unknowingly set in motion a cosmic dance of fate and destiny. Apath that shall lead you far beyond the familiar shores of yourhomeland, into the vast and uncharted realms of the cosmos.“"There are others that must be justified.“

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 36www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells1. Jan 1922 – Ireland, Lough Currane19."By what right do you speak thus?" Michael demanded, his heart achingwith the bitter pang of regret. "For it was not I who called forth thesedread beasts from the abyss, nor sought to bring ruin upon my peacefulexistence.""Indeed, you did not," The Fool conceded, their eyes clouded withsorrow. "Yet it is oft the way of things, that the most innocent of actionsmay give rise to unintended consequence.“"Curse you, then!" Michael cried, as despair cast its cold embraceabout his heart. "Curse you for bringing this storm upon my head, forplunging me into darkness without hope of deliverance!“"Would that I could undo the harm I have wrought," The Foolmurmured, their voice barely audible above the sighing wind. "But time,like the tide, flows ever onward, carrying us all towards our inescapabledestinies.“

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 37www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells1. Jan 1922 – Ireland, Lough Currane20."Destiny..." Michael repeated, the word echoing through his mind like afuneral dirge. His gaze turned towards the darkening sky, where thefirst stars of evening had begun to emerge, like ghostly sentinelsbearing witness to his plight."Then let it be," he whispered, resignation creeping into his soul. "Letdestiny's hand guide me where it will, be it towards glory or perdition.""Those to be redeemed are just five children, but they will become thehero saviours of the world. One of whom you have actually alreadysaved, but you have forgotten.""But, remember well this moment, Michael O'Neill," The Fool intoned,their voice fading as the night drew its ebony cloak about them. "For it ishere, at the threshold of despair, that your true journey begins.“

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 38www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells1. Jan 1922 – Ireland, Lough Currane21.amidst the shadows and twilight. Their enigmatic gaze fell upon Michael,as if to pierce the veil that shrouded his thoughts."Michael," The Fool's voice emerged, a distant echo carried on the wingsof eternity, "I am from Elkendon in the Hollow Earth, and I possess theBlack Book, an artifact of immense power that can shift the very fabric ofreality."The revelation hung in the air like a spectre, haunting the recesses ofMichael's mind. He pondered the impossibility of it all, yet the evidencelay before him in the very existence of The Fool and the monstrousMogs.Yet within the deepest recesses of his being, he sensed an ember ofcourage, glowing softly amidst the darkness of despair. Was it not theway of heroes to face insurmountable odds, to stand against the tide ofchaos and fight for truth, justice, and the preservation of all they helddear?

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 39www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells1. Jan 1922 – Ireland, Lough Currane22."Then let us rise," Michael declared, as the first rays of dawn brokeover the horizon, casting their golden light upon the world. "Let us keepthisBlack Book from these fiends and banish their malevolence from thegalaxy."The Fool's enigmatic visage softened, revealing a trace of gratitudebeneath their cryptic exterior. "Your resolve is admirable, MichaelO'Neill," they intoned, their voice resonating with the ageless wisdomof the cosmos. "Together, we shall face the shadows that threaten toconsume all light and, in doing so, forge our own destinies.“As the sun emerged from its night-time slumber to paint the heavens inhues of crimson and gold, Michael embraced his newfound purpose. Inthat singular moment, he stood as a beacon of hope amidst theencroaching darkness, his spirit indomitable and his heart aflame withthe fire of determination.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 40www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells1. Jan 1922 – Ireland, Lough Currane23."Lead me then to this quest," Michael commanded, his voice strongand resolute, "and may the stars above bear witness to our struggle.""Then follow me, Michael O'Neill," The Fool replied, extending one oftheir four arms towards the awaiting horizon. "For destiny beckons, andwe must answer its call.“Amidst the celestial canvas of twilight, where the sun's last embracelingered upon the horizon, Michael and The Fool ventured into thehallowed grounds of an ancient ruin. Therein, hidden beneath thegnarled roots of a primordial tree, they discovered a portal thatwhispered of secrets long forgotten. With each step, they descendedinto the bosom of shadows, their hearts heavy with the weight ofworlds yet unseen."Trust in your heart, Michael O'Neill," The Fool murmured, their wordslike the rustling of autumn leaves. "For within its chambers lies the keyto the gateway before us.“

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 41www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells1. Jan 1922 – Ireland, Lough Currane24.As these incantations drifted through the air, Michael felt the stirrings ofpower within his breast. It surged forth, a maelstrom of light anddarkness woven into an intricate tapestry of time and space. With athunderous roar, the portal sprang to life, its azure flames beckoningthe pair into the maw of the unknown."Into the abyss we plunge," Michael whispered, his voice barelyaudible amidst the raging tempest. "May our journey bear the fruits ofredemption and salvation."In response, The Fool merely nodded, the enigmatic glint in their eyesa harbinger of the trials yet to come.Mick remembered nothing,until he woke hours ? days ? weeks ? Later

Cell - 42www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells“Succouring”Assistance and support in times of stress1. Winter/KnowingArtist – Josh Groban / Cell – February SongArtist – Josh Groban / Cell – Pearls

Cell - 43www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of CellsFeet below the surface splashingRipples pulsing silver-blueIn his hand’s he cups a flowerStrawberry scent and creamy hue2 Feb 1922Artist – Josh Groban / Cell MachineArtist – Josh Groban / Cell – Awake

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 44www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells1.“He stretched out the North over the empty placeHanging the earth upon nothing.”- Job 26:7It was weeks!The rope tail was gone from his chest.A jelly-like compress covered the wound.Above him, the Fool was suspended head-first from the rafters of theCell.His faded green cloak wrapped about him, like a giant pair oftranslucent insect wings.Suddenly the Fool stretched, yawned, and Summersaulted to his feet,in front of Mick.2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 45www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells2.“Tis time to go young Dreamer” He buzzed. As if he were talking to anold friend.Strangely Mick was not disturbed by the absurdity of the situation henow found himself in.He already felt an odd kinship to the Fool.There were ‘Worker Bees’ in the Cell, twelve in all. Each about sevenfeet tall.They were hybrids, half-human, half-insect.All female, and remarkably beautiful.The Fool introduced these ‘Dancers’ to Mick, using their Irish names...and meanings.2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 46www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3.Aine (awn-ye – splendour).Aisling (ash-ling – dream).Aoife (ee-fa – radiant).Caoimhe (kwee-va – gentle).Ciara (kee-ra – dark).Eabha (ey-va – life).Eimur (ee-mur – swift).Eithne (en-ya – seed).Graine (grawn-ye – grain).Maeve (may-ve – intoxicating).Niamh (nee-ve – luster).Saoirse (ser-sha – freedom).The Dancers proffered some food to Mick. It was a combination of Pollenand Nectar.It had been rolled into three sticky globes, One Green, One Red, and OneBlue.2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 47www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells4.As Mick ate, although surprisingly refreshing, it made him drift back intoa deep sleep.As Mick slept, the Fool became manically busy.First, he stood, stretched, shook, and shed his skin.Like he just stepped out from his old clothes.But it came with great pain, and he screamed.His new raiment was dazzling in its glistening colours.He was taller, and stronger, with a mighty new pair of wings, and histhree eyes, although the same colours (red, green, and blue), were nowCompound Eyes, Though the red and blue eyes were both now patched.2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 48www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael5.The third green eye darted and rolled in precise recognition.‘He’, was now a ‘She’! A Giant Queen Bumblebee,They stretched and flapped ‘Their’ wings.At the side of their face were great mandibles.Suddenly, from the walls of the Beehive Cell, emerged the TwelveDancing Worker Bees.They each took a flake, put it in their mouths, chewing it, shaping it,moulding it, until they each then linked their own pieces together.So, the process repeated, until jointly, they had produced a six-sidedGolden Central Cell, or Nest.This Cell, was yet surrounded by six more Cells.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 49www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael6.The Dancers then stepped into the six outer Cells, two per Cell.Melissa gathered up Mick, rising into the air, hovering over, and theninto the Central Cell.This Cocoon of Cells would be the pattern, or shadow, for the UltimateSanctuary; the ‘Cybrary’.Just as that dessert Tabernacle tent had been for the ‘Temple’.Each Bee then shaped wax lids for their Cell,and quickly spun their own gossamer shroud.The Queen Bumblebee (Melissa in Greek), spun the same for the stillsleeping Mick, then a lid, and finally their own shroud.Suddenly the walls of the Beehive shot as a Rocket into the sky, andthe honeycomb of Cells, rose gracefully aloft, gliding into the air, as a

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 50www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7.great morning ‘Lark Ascending’.Then, as if with beating hidden wings, it raced over the fields, rivers, andmountains, and out across the Atlantic Ocean, to the rocky island ofSkellig Michael, arching to the summit, and the drystone Beehive Cell,‘Ard Shalom’.As by name, it was the very Heights of Peace.The Beehive rose a few feet into the air, allowing the Cocoon of Cells toglide within.It was several days later when Mick awoke.He was in a separate Beehive, away from Ard Shalom, alone. Melissanot wishing to shock him, with her new shape-shifting. It was two of theDancers, that eventually came to awaken him, Eithne (Seed), andGraine (Grain).2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 51www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells8.They explained where he now lay, and the Metamorphosis of the Fool,to Queen ‘Melissa’.Then, of Melissa’s proposed journey, across the Green Wake, fromSkellig Michael, all the way to Mount Carmel, in Israel.Stopping at the Seven Great Tabernacles :-The Green Wake of Saint Michael was, and is, a line connecting SevenGreat Tabernacles, dedicated to the Archangel Michael acrossEurope, and the Middle East.The aligned Seven Great Tabernacles include :-1. Skellig Michael: The line begins in Ireland, on a rocky island off thecoast of Kerry, where Archangel Michael appeared to Saint Patrick, tohelp him liberate that country from the devil.2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 52www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells9.2. Saint Michael’s Mount: The line then heads East and stops in Englandon St. Michael’s Mount, a Cornish islet which, at low tide, joins themainland. Here, St. Michael is said to have spoken to a group of fishermen.3. Mont Saint Michel: The sacred line then goes on to France, on anotherfamous island, in Mont Saint-Michel, also one of the places in which St.Michael has appeared.4. Sacra Di San Michele: About a thousand kilometres away, in Val deSusa, the fourth sanctuary arises: the Sacra di San Michele. The verysame straight-line links this sacred place to the rest of the tabernaclesdedicated to Saint Michael5. Santuario Di San Michele Archangelo: Moving another thousandkilometres in a straight line, one reaches Puglia, where an inaccessiblecavern has become a sacred place: the Sanctuary of Saint Michael. Its2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 53www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells10.story goes back to the year 490, when St. Michael appeared to SanLorenzo Maiorano.6. Symi’s Monastery: From Italy, the archangel’s footprints reach thesixth sanctuary. This one is in Greece, on the island of Symi. Thismonastery houses a three-meter-high statue of the Archangel, one ofthe largest in the world7. Mount Carmel Monastery: The Sacred Line ends in Israel, at MountCarmel Monastery, in Haifa. This place has been revered sinceantiquity, and its construction as a Christian and Catholic sanctuarydates back to the 12th century.Within these Seven Great Sanctuaries Melissa, ‘Soldier’ Michael O’Neill,and the Twelve Dancers, would plant the seeds of The Great Sowing.2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 54www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells11.Then on to Jerusalem, to the gates of the Great Temple, into the Holy ofHolies, and the very Gates of Elkendon. To within the Hollow-Earthitself…Upon the ragged shores of Skellig Michael, Mick O'Neill cast hisweathered gaze out over roiling waves and breathless whispers offorgotten tales.His broad-shouldered frame stood tall against the gusts that clawed athis black hair and sought purchase beneath the hems of his wornfisherman's garb. Many a myth and legend swirled around him like thesea-spray that touched his sun-kissed cheeks, but he paid them noheed, for his heart was anchored in the tangible world where the weightof his nets offered solace from the uncertainty of fickle folklore."Ye cannot trust what ye cannot touch," he'd often admonish any whodared to speak of strange encounters with otherworldly beings. Yet, asthe dying sun bled its crimson hue upon the horizon, Mick found himself2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael
https://youtu.be/nplLLEwBIeg

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 55www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells12.ensnared by the lilting melody of an ancient song that wove itselfthrough the salty air."Who goes there?" he grumbled, squinting towards the source of thehaunting tune.From the shadows emerged Melissa, their four arms draped indiaphanous silks that whispered secrets as they moved. A half-human,half-insect visage stared back at Mick with gleaming multifaceted eyesthat seemed to hold the very stars within their depths. In one of theirmany hands, they cradled the Black Book, its pages heavy with the inkof fate and destiny."Ah, Soldier Neill," Melissa crooned, their melodious voice undulatinglike the waves themselves. "You who have discounted the unseen, willyou not lend your ear to a tale untold?"Mick's brow furrowed, his scepticism gnawing at the edges of his soul2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 56www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells13.like a relentless tide eroding stone. "What nonsense do you bringbefore me, creature?" he demanded, though the tremor in his voicebetrayed the disquiet that stirred within him."Only that which has been written," Melissa replied cryptically, holdingthe Black Book aloft as if to offer Mick the answers he so dearly sought."But perhaps you fear the truth, and would rather remain adrift in yourscepticism."Mick's thoughts churned like the sea beneath a storm, uneasy at theprospect of surrendering his steadfast beliefs. Yet something in thegleam of those otherworldly eyes tugged at a hidden longing deepwithin his heart, one that yearned for the magic and wonder he had longdismissed as mere fantasy. And so, with a tentative step, Mick O'Neillfound himself drawn towards the enigmatic creature who held the key toa world beyond his wildest imaginings.2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 57www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells14.With the sigh of an ancient wind, Melissa turned a page in the BlackBook, revealing a silver-inked illustration that seemed to shimmer withinthe void of its obsidian surface. A labyrinthine tapestry of stars,galaxies, and cosmic dust stretched before Mick's disbelieving eyes,each celestial body woven into a pattern of such exquisite complexitythat it seemed as though Time itself had bared its very essence for himto behold."Behold," intoned Melissa, their voice resonating with the sorrowfulcadence of a funeral dirge, "the destiny that has been laid upon yourmortal shoulders, Soldier Neill. You have been chosen to accompany uson a quest to recover the lost seeds of salvation, the precious kernels oflife that must be planted at the Seven Great Tabernacles across theGreen Wake.""Chosen?" echoed Mick, his heart trembling like the lonely cry of aseabird lost amidst a raging tempest. "By whom? And for what reason?"2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 58www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells15."Reasons beyond our ken, dear fisherman," came the enigmatic reply,as cryptic as the depths of the midnight sea. "The seeds slumber in thecradles of the cosmos, awaiting the touch of one who possesses therequisite balance of faith and doubt, strength and vulnerability, earthand sky. One such as you, Michael O'Neill.""Me?" stammered Mick, his thoughts swirling like tortured eddies amidstthe gloom of his own disbelief. "Why me? I am but a simple fisherman,a man of nets and hooks, not some fabled hero or seeker of cosmictruths!""Alas, such is the capricious nature of Fate," sighed Melissa, theircompound eyes shimmering with the reflected light of countless dyingsuns."One cannot choose the path that one must tread, only the manner inwhich one walks it."2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 59www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells16."Then I refuse!" declared Mick, the fire of his defiance burning like athousand suns within his breast."I cannot abandon my family, my village, to follow some mad dreamacross the stars! Surely you can find another who is more suited tosuch a task!“"Your fear and love for your kin are duly noted," murmured Melissa,their voice now tinged with the melancholy echo of a requiem mass."However, it is not our place to question the dictates of the Black Book,nor to choose those who would bear its burden. We merely offer thechoice, the opportunity to embrace one's destiny or flee from it. Thedecision, Michael O'Neill, lies solely within your hands."As the weight of that terrible choice bore down upon him, Mick felt thetide of his own resolve slowly receding, the relentless pull of the cosmiccurrents drawing him inexorably towards the shores of the unknown.2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 60www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells17.And as he gazed upon the shimmering illustration in the Black Book, he wondered if the seeds of salvation might not hold the key to saving not only his family but also himself."Very well," he whispered at last, his voice heavy with the gravity of his decision. "I will join you on this quest, though I know not what awaits me in the vast darkness of the Green Wake.“"Such is the nature of all great journeys," smiled Melissa, their enigmatic countenance mirroring the mingling of wonder and trepidation that danced within Mick's heart. "And so, we shall embark together, Soldier Neill, upon a voyage that shall forever alter the course of history and the shape of the cosmos themselves."In the moonlit stillness of Skellig Michael, Mick found himself restless and plagued by visions that swirled within his mind like tempestuous waves upon a storm-tossed sea. The world he had known, the simple life of the farmer and the fisherman, seemed to be fading into a distant2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 61www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells18.memory, replaced by the vivid dreams of destruction and chaos thatnow haunted his every waking moment. He could see the skies aflamewith strange celestial fires, hear the wails of the forsaken as they wereswallowed by the encroaching darkness, and feel the cold hand ofdeath closing ever tighter around his heart."Is this the fate that awaits us all?" Mick murmured into the shadows,the words slipping from his lips like the echoes of some long-forgottenlament."Am I but a fool for dismissing the claims of Melissa and their BlackBook?"As if summoned by the weight of his doubts, Melissa appeared beforehim, no longer the enigmatic half-human, half-insect creature he hadencountered before, but now transformed into a Giant QueenBumblebee, her vibrant colours and dazzling wings casting ashimmering kaleidoscope of light upon the surrounding cliffs.2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 62www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells19."Michael O'Neill," she intoned, her voice a mellifluous symphony thatseemed to resonate within the very core of his being, "it is not the roleof the wise to blindly accept the claims of others, nor to shrink from thetruths that reveal themselves in the darkest recesses of our souls.""But what am I to do?" Mick implored, his eyes brimming with theunspoken fears and hopes that battled within him for supremacy. "Howcan I know that this quest you speak of is not merely the feveredimaginings of my own troubled heart?""Behold," Melissa whispered, and suddenly, the veil between worldsseemed to part before them, revealing an endless expanse of verdantfields and azure skies, where myriads of fantastical creatures soaredand frolicked in harmonious bliss. "This is the Green Wake, Michael, therealm of dreams and destinies, where the seeds of salvation lie hidden,waiting to be discovered and nurtured by those who would dare to treadits sacred paths."2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 63www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells20."Yet how can I, a humble fisherman, hope to stand against the forcesthat would seek to snuff out the very light of creation?" Mick asked, hisvoice heavy with the weight of his doubts."Your heart is true, and your spirit strong," Melissa replied, her eyesmeeting his with a depth of understanding that seemed to transcend theboundaries of time and space. "The path before you may be fraughtwith peril, but know that you do not walk it alone. For we, together withthe Twelve Dancers, shall be with you every moment of the way,guiding your steps through the labyrinthine mysteries of the GreenWake and beyond.""Then let it be so," Mick resolved, his soul filling with newfound purposeas he gazed upon the wondrous vision before him. "Together, we shallface whatever trials await us in the great unknown, and bring forth theseeds of salvation to heal this wounded world.""Such is the nature of all great journeys," Melissa intoned, her wings2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 64www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells21.unfurling like the banners of some celestial host. "Come, MichaelO'Neill, and let us embark upon a voyage that shall forever alter thecourse of history and the shape of the cosmos themselves."The sun dipped below the horizon, staining the sky with hues of roseand gold as it heralded the birth of an age both wondrous and terrible.On that fateful eve, Mick O'Neill stood upon the rocky shore of SkelligMichael, his heart heavy with the burden of a thousand unspoken fears,yet buoyed by the knowledge that he had made a choice to standagainst the encroaching darkness."Are you ready, Michael O'Neill?" Melissa asked, her voice like thewhispering sigh of a summer breeze through the fields of Elkendon’sWildflowers. Their kaleidoscopic eyes, pools of liquid amber, glistenedwith the wisdom of eons as they beheld the fisherman's rugged visage."I am," Mick replied, his voice steady despite the trembling of his hands."Let us begin this journey, whatever may befall."2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 65www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells22."Then come," Melissa beckoned, their four arms outstretched towardthe sea as if in silent invitation to the waves themselves.With nary a word, the Twelve Dancers joined them on the shore, theirinsectoid forms a symphony of shimmering wings and iridescent chitin.Eithne (en-ya – seed), her serene countenance belying the strengthwithin her slender limbs, took her place beside Graine (grawn-ye –grain), who brandished her fierce mandibles with a warrior's pride.These two, Queen’s-In-Waiting, were joined by the gently hummingswarm of the remaining Dancers, Aine (awn-ye – splendour), Aisling(ash-ling – dream), Aoife (ee-fa – radiant), Caoimhe (kwee-va – gentle),Ciara (kee-ra – dark), Eabha (ey-va – life), Eimur (ee-mur – swift),Maeve (may-ve – intoxicating), Niamh (nee-ve – luster), and finallySaoirse (ser-sha – freedom).As one, they set forth upon the waters aboard a ‘Cocoon of Cells’, abeehive-shaped vessel, its golden walls wrought of wax andhoneycomb, each cell aglow with the dreams of the echoes of Mick2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 66www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells23.O’Neill, and twelve slumbering bees. The ship glided over the waveswith effortless grace, propelled by the combined efforts of Melissa,whose wings fanned the air with a gentle hum, and the Twelve Dancers,whose delicate limbs danced upon the water's surface, weavingintricate patterns that spoke of the eternal dance between life anddeath."Where lies our first destination?" Mick queried; his gaze fixed upon thehorizon as if seeking to pierce the veil that shrouded the realms beyondmortal ken."Across the Green Wake we shall sail, guided by the wisdom of theancients and the whispers of the wind," Melissa intoned, her voice like ahalf-remembered lullaby from a distant past."There, in the heart of the emerald sea, lies the first of the Seven GreatTabernacles, wherein we shall sow the seeds of salvation."2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 67www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells24.They had simply circled back in a sweeping spiral motion, within a vastswirling green mist, that shrouded the island that was Skellig Michael,like a colossal version of Melissa’s old faded cloak. Therefore, hidingthe initial planting, from the ever-watchful eye of their enemy."Yet what manner of foe shall we face on this perilous voyage?" Mickpondered, his thoughts adrift amidst the gathering shadows ofuncertainty."For surely there are those who would seek to thwart our quest andplunge the world into eternal night.""Of such things we cannot speak, for even the language of dreams isfraught with danger," Melissa replied cryptically, their eyes, ever-shiftingkaleidoscopes of colour, gazing into the depths of Mick's soul."Know only that you are not alone, and that within your heart lies astrength born of love and sacrifice."2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 68www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells25.As the stars emerged from their celestial slumber to bear witness to thebeginning of their journey, Mick stood at the prow of the vessel, hisgaze cast toward the unknown shores that awaited them. In thosemoments of reflection, when the boundaries between reality andfantasy seemed to blur and meld into one, he found solace in theknowledge that he had chosen a path that would forever change thecourse of history."Let us go forth, then," Mick whispered, his words carried away on thewinds of destiny, "to face whatever trials may come. United in purpose,we shall forge a new future for all, in the name of hope andredemption."The vessel, an ephemeral beehive of gossamer dreams, traversed theiridescent waves of the Green Wake, guided by the celestial map ofancient stars. Amidst the emerald sea, a myriad of phantasmagoricalbeings dwelled, their forms as varied and mysterious as the ever-shifting hues t hat painted the waters. As Mick O'Neill stood upon the2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 69www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells26.deck, his heart shivered with trepidation at the thought of what layahead, yet within him, a spark of wonder burned."Look yonder," whispered Eithne, her slender insectine arms gesturingtoward a gathering of luminous creatures that danced upon the water'ssurface."By the gods," Mick murmured, his eyes widening in awe. "Whatmanner of beings are these?""Ah, these are but fleeting wisps of twilight," replied Melissaenigmatically, their voice a symphony of ancient secrets. "Their heartsyearn for the embrace of the eternal night, and yet they find solace inthe ephemeral beauty of the dawn.""Will they aid us in our quest?" Mick asked, his gaze fixed upon thespectral ballet before him.2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 70www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells27."Alas, their allegiance lies only with the tides of fate," Melissa replied,their words as cryptic as the riddles woven into the tapestry of time."Their path is not ours to walk."As the vessel sailed onward through the verdant mists of the GreenWake, Mick found himself contemplating the cyclical nature ofexistence, the ebb and flow of birth and death that bound all livingthings to the inexorable march of destiny. It was within this reverie ofmelancholy reflection that he first sensed the presence of a malevolentforce, lurking unseen within the depths of the unknown."Melissa!" Mick cried out, his voice resonating with the echoes of athousand lost memories. "Do you feel it too? The shadow that creepsupon us, its tendrils reaching from the abyss?""Indeed, I sense it too," Melissa replied, their mellifluous voice tingedwith sorrow. "A darkness stirs beneath the waves, a foe most vile andcunning."2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 71www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells28."Then let us prepare for battle," intoned Graine, her warrior spirit ablazewith the fire of determination. "For we shall not yield to fear, nor shall webe vanquished by despair."As the vessel neared the edge of the abyss, where the Green Wakegave way to the boundless void of the cosmos, the enemy revealeditself: a monstrous leviathan, its serpentine form a grotesqueamalgamation of flesh and nightmare. Its eyes, twin orbs ofmalevolence, bore into Mick's soul, seeking to shatter his resolve andcast him into the depths of oblivion."Stand firm, Mick O'Neill!" shouted Melissa, their wings beating with thefury of a thousand storms."You possess within you the power to defy this abomination, tovanquish the darkness that seeks to consume the world!“"By the love I bear for my family, and for the future I seek to forge, I2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 72www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells29.shall not falter!" Mick declared; his voice resolute as he braced himselffor the impending clash of titans."Then let the battle commence," whispered Melissa, their enigmaticgaze fixed upon the horizon, where the endless cycle of life and deathplayed out in the theatre of eternity.Upon the precipice of oblivion, Mick O'Neill stood steadfast, a solitaryfigure in the face of an encroaching darkness.The monstrous leviathan loomed before him, its malevolent eyesreflecting the strife and anguish that had plagued his journey thus far.As the creature surged forth to consume all that lay before it, Mick drewupon the wisdom and skills he had acquired throughout his odyssey,those lessons gleaned from the enigmatic Fool, the compassionateMelissa, and the twelve Dancers who guided and guarded him throughthe Green Wake.2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 73www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells30."By the light of lost stars and the grace of forgotten gods," Mickwhispered, his voice resonant within the shifting void between worlds, "Ishall banish thee to the abyss from whence thou came."In that moment, Mick felt the weight of the Black Book pressed againsthis chest, the words inscribed within its ancient pages coursing throughhis veins. He sensed the dormant power that slept within the SevenGreat Tabernacles, and knew he must awaken the seeds of salvation torestore balance to his world."Melissa," Mick murmured, his gaze never wavering from the fearsomevisage of the beast."Help me plant these seeds, that our village of Sneem may be sparedthis wretched fate.""Your heart speaks true, Mick O'Neill," Melissa replied, her wingsshimmering like iridescent dreams caught on the edge of waking.2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael https://youtu.be/1aXWu3JuPNQ

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 74www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells31."We shall scatter the seeds across the vast expanse of the cosmos,that they may take root and blossom into new life."As they sowed the celestial fields with the fruits of their labour, Mickwatched with awe as the luminous seeds took root in the fabric of realityitself, from Skellig Michael connecting all of the Seven GreatTabernacles, weaving patterns of hope and renewal that pushed backagainst the encroaching darkness.Something in the depths caught Mick’s eye, it was undoubtedly theshimmering of a glowing Golden Trident, in the scaly hands of anundulating Merrow ‘Wollow’. It shone, as a penetrating lighthouse, inthe churning murky depths.Alongside her swam a muscled dolphin, ‘Squeak’, mirroring her everymovement.The leviathan shrank from the onslaught of light, its twisted form2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 75www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells32.unravelled by the beams that tore, and indeed shredded, the threads ofdestiny that bound them all."Though we live and die in the shadow of the void," Mick intoned, hisvoice a solemn dirge that echoed through the realms, "we shall not beundone by the darkness that lies between the stars.""Indeed," Melissa murmured, their cryptic gaze fixed upon the unfoldingtapestry of existence. "For within each mortal heart beats the pulse ofeternity, a rhythm that defies the inexorable march of time.""Go now, Mick O'Neill," Melissa whispered, her mellifluous tonescushioning the weight of parting.Melissa’s, and the Twelve Dancers, journey led beyond the tail of theGreen Wake, to dwell, for a time and space, in the hallowed sanctuaryof Elkendon, within the Hollow Earth. But this was not the time or spacefor Michael…2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 76www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells33."Return to your village, your family, and share the wisdom you havegarnered in our company.Shine like the beacon you have become, guiding those who wander indarkness towards the light of hope.""Thank you, my friends," Mick replied, his eyes glistening with tears ashe bid farewell to those who had stood by him through trials andtribulations."I shall carry your memory always, and strive to honour your sacrifice."Together they joined hands for a last time, Melissa, Mick, and theTwelve Dancers, to pray and thank God for their deliverance, and thePlanting of the Lord’s Garden, ‘The Great Sowing’ of the Holy Spirit.As Mick traversed the path that led him home, he knew that he wasforever changed, his spirit marked indelibly by the trials he had endured2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 77www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells34.and the wonders he had witnessed. He would serve as a beacon for hiscommunity, illuminating the shadows cast by doubt and fear, andinspiring them to embrace the cyclical nature of life and death, of lossand renewal.And so it came to pass that Mick O'Neill, once a sceptical fishermanwho dismissed the myths and folklore of his people, emerged from thecrucible of destiny as a vessel of hope, a guardian of the eternal cyclethat bound them all together in the ever-churning wheel of existence.Melissa would call on ‘Soldier’ Michael O’Neill, on many moreunsolicited occasions, primarily for the salvation and justification, of anumber of children.One of whom, the ‘Merrow’, unremembered, he had already pluckedfrom the deck of the Titanic, ten years earlier.Predestined, but by free will, she had just rescued them all, from the2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 78www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells35.gaping red maw, of that mighty Leviathan.Thus, the Great Tapestry continued to lay down its pattern and colourson the Loom of Time and Space.These children were inextricably entwined in the Earth’s Rapture.A ‘Succouring’, a ‘Suffering’, a ‘Sundering’, and a ‘Summoning’.For the Justification of the Seasons of Winter, Spring, Summer, andAutumn.For the Sanctification of the Realms of Water, Air, Fire, and Earth.For the Glorification of the Psyche of Heart, Mind, Soul, and Body.Anuna – Geantrai, Goltrai, and Suantrai.2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 79www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells36.He wishes for the Cloths of HeavenHad I the heavens’ embroidered cloths,Enwrought with golden and silver light,The blue and the dim and the dark clothsOf night and light and the half-light,I would spread the cloths under your feet:But I, being poor, have only my dreams;I have spread my dreams under your feet;Tread softly because you tread on my dreamsW. B. Yeats2. Feb 1922 – Ireland, Skellig Michael

Cell - 80www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells“Succouring”Assistance and support in times of stress1. Winter/BelievingArtist – Thin Lizzy / Cell – Roisin Dubh (Black Rose)Artist – Ava / Cell - Wildflowers https://youtu.be/Z26BvHOD_sg

Cell - 81www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of CellsThe Sun it rises rusty-redSplaying through the treesHis shape reflected in the waterBlack Book upon his knees3. Mar 1968Artist – Walt Disney / Cell – Fantasia (Sugar Plum Fairy)Artist – Loreena McKennitt / Cell – Stolen Child

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 82www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini1.The pale dawn crept over the horizon, washing the world in mutedshades of lilac and peach. A chill still hung in the air, the last gasp ofnight before the sun claimed the sky.It was 5am, the air was sharp and fresh. Mick was outside his farm atBunnakilla. He did not yet know, but today, ‘St Patrick’s’, he would seeMelissa for the last time.Mick and Mary loved all of their own children, as well as their sixteengrand children, very much !But this special day, Melissa would make the biggest request of Mickand Mary, to take under their wings a vast Collection of over 9000‘Vagabonds of the Western World’.Across Ireland there are thousands of what are known as ‘Cillini’ (LittleCells).A Cillín, (plural Cillini), is an historic burial site in Ireland, primarily usedfor stillborn and unbaptized infants.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 83www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini2.These burial areas, were also used for the recently deceased, whowere not allowed in consecrated churchyards. Including, the mentallydisabled, suicides, beggars, executed criminals, and shipwreck victims.It was because of these Cillini, that Melissa this particular day, was tocall on his very good friend for a momentous endeavour, far greaterthan Soldier Neill had ever encountered before.Succouring the ‘Massacre of the Innocents’ !For among these Cillini were twelve that held a disturbing, andparticularly grim secret. These were beneath, what originally were,Workhouses for the poor and the destitute.The Workhouses became the last refuge for thousands of unwed,pregnant young women.Run by Catholic Sisterhoods, State funded, they purported to offer newhomes, through adoption, for this vast multitude of First Born.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 84www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini3.However, thousands died before the age of five, only to be laid to rest, inthe underground vaults of these buildings, many just huge septic tanks.It was a different Ireland, gripped by poverty, unbending religiousadherence, and enduring traditional beliefs.Mick had suffered a stroke in early 1960. His speech and step both nowfaltered.But he still drew his tobacco pipe, as he stood at the red door of hisfarmhouse, that cold frosty March morning, staring out across his fields,when something caught his eye.He could see the great Scarecrow, he had staked in one of his fields, butsomething was wrong, what was it ? he asked himself, and then he smiled.For the Scarecrow had four arms not two.Instantly, he recognised Melissa in the Moonlight...

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 85www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini4.The stroke fell from him, as though he had just put down two huge milkchurns, and he was striding out across that hayfield, clasping Melissa inboth of his Mighty arms, and lifting him spinning, into the air.“Put me down, you Man Mountain !” Laughed Melissa.“We have a Great Harvest ahead of us”.“A Great Harvest ?” Questioned Mick.“It is but the middle of March !”.“The Harvest I speak of, is the Gathering of Precious Souls, Gone to Earthfar too soon”.Mick immediately knew, and accepted, that Melissa had this one final taskfor him. So he put an arm behind Melissas shoulders, guiding him slowly tothe cattle barn, Micks ‘Office’. Sitting down on a hay bale to listen to his‘calling’.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 86www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini5..To anyone passing, it would indeed have made a very strange sight.A Farmer talking to his Scarecrow.Mick stared intently, as Melissa explained the Great Harvest that layahead of them. For in a single day, this very St Patricks Day, theywould recover nine thousand lost souls,from the ‘tombs’ below twelve orphanages.This would be a Multi Echo, in a single instant…Across the entire fourProvinces (Munster, Leinster, Connaught, and Ulster), of Ireland. An in-gathering of some 750 ‘Abandoned Castaways’ from each location.Mick would go to one very special Ciillin, ‘Bon Secours’, together withthe Dancers, Aoife (Radiant) and Eabha (Life). There to recover ‘RoisinDubh’, the ‘Black Rose’.Across Eire, the Great ‘Pied Piper’ Fool, would lead these Angels intothe Hollow Earth, as he played on two Silver Pipes. Fairy children,

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 87www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini6.filled with happiness and laughter. They would become the‘Wildflowers Of Elkendon’.And WOE to anyone who would ever come against them!“before pulling back, joints protesting. “Now, will you be joining me forbreakfast, or is this to be a short visit? I’ve bread fresh baked and astory or two, if you’ve the time.”The scarecrow smiled, and in place of burlap and straw stood aslender, pale figure with eyes of molten gold. “For you, Mick, I willalways make the time.”Together, the old farmer and the ageless creature made their way intothe farmhouse, leaving the fields bathed in the golden light of dawn.Inside, the aroma of fresh bread and stew greeted them like an oldfriend. Mick settled into his worn armchair by the fireplace as Melissatook a seat across from him, tucking four spindly legs beneath a simpledress.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 88www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini7,“So,” Melissa began, steepling fingers beneath her chin. “What grandadventures have you to share this morning?”"Oh, much and more.” Mick tamped tobacco into his pipe and struck amatch, puffing until the embers glowed. “The McAllisters’ prize sowfarrowed a fine litter of piglets last week. Young Eamon has taken toreading those fantastical stories you’re so fond of. And there was astorm the likes of which we haven’t seen in an age—hailstones largeas goose eggs, wind enough to tear the slates from the rooftops.”“My, my. It seems Bunnakilla has been busy in my absence.” Melissa’sgaze turned inward, golden eyes dimming. “If only such idyllic rhythmsfilled my days. But fate weaves as fate wills, and there are darkerthreads that demand my attention.”Mick exhaled a plume of smoke, watching it curl toward the rafters.“This business with the orphanages again.”“Yes.” Melissa’s voice was bleak, hollowed by the weight of centuries.“

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 89www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini8.At his touch, warmth and light returned to Melissa’s eyes in a rush.“Ever my anchor in the howling dark,” she whispered, giving his handsa fierce squeeze. “How fortunate I am that fate saw fit to bind ustogether, lifetime after lifetime.”Mick's smile was soft with affection and deep, abiding trust. “And howfortunate I am to stand at your side, my dear one, now and forever.”The fields surrounding Bunnakilla farm rolled out under a heavy greysky, stubbled with the remains of last year's harvest.Mick cast his gaze across the brooding landscape, memorysuperimposing brighter visions over the bleak reality—vast seas ofverdant green rippling toward the horizon, wildflowers bobbing in alively breeze, the musical laughter of children chasing one anotherthrough the swaying grass.There are stains upon the land that must be cleansed, wrongs thatmust be righted. The ghosts of the innocent cry out for justice, and I ambound to answer their pleas.”

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 90www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini9.“And so am I.” Mick set his pipe aside, weathered hands closing overMelissa’s with a gentle squeeze. “We’ve walked this road before, youand I, and will walk it again until the last dark place has been lit anew.”Eight children. Five girls and three boys, all grown and gone theirseparate ways into the world, leaving Mick and Mary alone once morein the farmhouse that had known so much joy and sorrow."They were the light that kept the dark at bay for us," Mary said softly,coming to stand at Mick's side. She slipped an arm through his, leaninginto his solid warmth, and together they looked out at the fields that hadbeen the only legacy they could leave their children."Almost makes you wish for those days again, don't it? When they wereall underfoot, driving us half mad with their nonsense.""I'd give near anything to have that kind of madness back," Mickadmitted, pressing a kiss to Mary's temple. "Quiet doesn't suit these oldbones half so well as chaos."

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 91www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini10.Mary laughed, a sound like rustling leaves that never failed to stirMick's heart. "You're not so old yet, Mick Fanning, and don't you beforgetting it! We've a few more adventures left in us, I'd wager.""That we do, love." Mick smiled down at his wife, the light of his life,grateful beyond measure for the bond that had kept them togetherthrough all the world's changes. "And we'll keep on finding them for aslong as we're able."Whatever might come, they would face it side by side as they alwayshad. And that was enough.The morning sun filtered through the dusty windows of the farmhouse,dappling the worn floorboards with golden light. Mick sat at the ricketytable, nursing a cup of tea and watching his children tumble into thekitchen, still bleary-eyed from sleep."Da, have you seen my other boot?" May asked, hopping on one foot."I can't find the dratted thing anywhere!"

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 92www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini11."Check under the sofa," Mick suggested. "You've a habit of kickingthem off there, if I recall."May snorted, but obediently limped over to rout around beneath thesofa. A triumphant crow a moment later signalled her success.Kitty yawned, scratching at her tangled bedhead. "What's for breakfasttoday, Ma? I'm starved!""Oat porridge as always," Mary said briskly, ladling steaming porridgeinto bowls. "Eat up now, you've chores to be getting on with beforelessons.""Yes, Ma," the children chorused, though not without a few grumbles.They settled in around the table, passing bowls back and forth andchattering like magpies.Mick hid a smile in his tea cup, watching fondly as John tried to sneakextra sugar into May's porridge when she wasn't looking. Some thingsnever changed, even as his children grew like weeds before his eyes.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 93www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini12.There were eight of them now, a boisterous brood who kept Mick andMary on their toes from dawn till dusk. But they wouldn't trade it foranything, not the chaos or the laughter or the love that made each daybrighter than the last. They were blessed beyond measure, and Mickthanked God for that every morning when he woke to the sound oflaughter drifting through the walls.The morning sun filtered through dusty curtains, dappling the wornfloorboards. Mick sighed and scrubbed a calloused hand over his face,bones creaking as he hauled himself out of bed.Another day, another dollar. Life moved on at its own unhurried pace inBunnakilla, slow and steady as the seasons. But some mornings Mickwoke with the bone-deep feeling that time was slipping through hisfingers like sand. His children wouldn't stay children forever.He dressed and splashed water on his face from the basin, studying hisreflection in the spotted mirror. New lines had etched themselves intothe weathered skin around his eyes, and silver threaded his hair at the

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 94www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini13.temples. When had that happened?Shaking off his melancholy, Mick clomped downstairs to find Marybustling about the kitchen and the younger children squabbling over thelast of the porridge."Da's coming, quick!" Michael stage-whispered, grabbing the bowl topush it towards Mick's usual seat.Mick ruffled Michael's hair, a surge of affection nearly bringing a lumpto his throat. "No need for that now. There's plenty to go around, ain'tthere Mary?""There is," Mary said, her fond smile easing the ache in Mick's chest.Eight growing children could eat him out of house and home, but they'dget by. They always did.After breakfast Mick set out to check on the fields, his brood scattering

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 95www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini14.to begin their daily chores. He took a deep, bracing breath of the coolmorning air and felt some of the tension ease from his shoulders.The land was waking up after a long winter's rest, earthy and lush andteeming with life. Everything was as it should be.Mick smiled up at the pale blue sky, clouds scudding by in a hurry.Time might slip through his fingers, but the land was eternal. His familywas eternal. They'd endure long after he was bones in the earth, anunbroken cycle stretching endlessly into the future.The thought comforted him as he began his work. The fields werecalling, and for now that was enough.The next years passed in a blur of joy and sorrow, life and death, astime always did.Sheila was a quiet, solemn child, given to wandering the fields alone.She spoke little but saw much, her gaze holding depths of wisdombeyond her years. Mick often found her sitting beneath the shade ofan

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 96www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini15.oak tree, slender fingers tangled in the grass as she gazed up at theshifting clouds.He'd settle down beside her, relishing the comfortable silence. Sheila'spresence was a balm for his weary soul, her tranquil joy a reminder oflife's simple pleasures. They could sit for hours without exchanging aword, but Mick had come to understand the language of her silence.Paddy, on the other hand, was a bundle of restless energy, foreverdarting about and chattering a mile a minute. He followed Mick aroundthe farm, peppering him with questions and tugging at his sleeve,demanding stories or games or piggyback rides.Mick indulged him as best he could, knowing these days would passtoo soon. Before he knew it Paddy had grown into a lanky youth, but inMick's eyes he would always remain the bright-eyed boy who hadbrought so much laughter and mischief into their lives.The years had weathered Mick and Mary, etching fine lines into their

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 97www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini16.tanned skin, but in each other's eyes they remained the rosy-cheekedsweethearts of their youth. After all their years together Mick stillcouldn't fathom the depths of his love for Mary, as constant andenduring as the rolling hills of home.Nelly and Beasey were the babies of the family, filling the house withgirlish giggles and squabbles. They were inseparable, two peas in apod with matching chestnut curls and mischievous grins. Mick's heartswelled to see his daughters growing into fine young women, even ashe clung to the memory of them toddling about, chubby fists clutching athis trouser legs.The fields whispered of loss, but also of comfort. All things must pass,but they would live on here forever, in the land they had tilled and thefamily they had raised. The thought eased something in Mick's chest.They had built a life to stand the test of time, as solid and sure as thehills themselves.The morning sun dipped through wispy clouds, dappling the hills in

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 98www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini17.shades of gold and amber. Mick leaned against the gate of the cattlepen, pipe clenched between his teeth, and breathed deep of the crispair. His joints ached with the coming rain, but it was a familiar pain,worn and weathered as his own skin.A flicker of movement caught his eye as two slender figures emergedfrom the treeline, pale and ethereal in the morning light. Mick blinked,unsure if his eyes were playing tricks, but the figures remained. Theywere unlike anything he had seen, with elongated limbs and delicate,insect-like wings that shimmered iridescent blue and green.The creatures paused at the edge of the field, antennae twitchingdelicately. Mick held his breath, heart pounding in his chest. He hadheard tales of the Good Folk but never dreamed to encounter themhimself.After a long moment one of the creatures tilted its head, gazing at Mickwith eyes as pale and depthless as moonlight. A voice drifted across

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 99www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini18.the field, soft as the morning mist: "You have nurtured life within thesehills, and now you must guide life to its end."Mick's throat tightened. "I don't understand," he said hoarsely."All things must pass," the creature intoned. Its companion flutteredghostly wings in a sigh that rustled the long grass. "Even the strongestof bonds must be severed. But you have built a legacy to stand eternal,as certain as the rolling of the seasons and the turning of the earth."The creatures began to fade into the morning light, pale formsdissolving until only the whisper of wings remained. Mick clutched at thegate to steady himself, blinking back tears as realization dawned. Thefields had always whispered of loss, and now it had come. But theywould live on forever here, in the land they had tilled and the family theyhad raised.Mick took a deep, shuddering breath and set off across the fields as thesun crested over the hills in a blaze of golden light.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 100www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini19.The house was silent when Mick entered. Mary sat by the fireplace, herknitting needles still and her eyes distant. She glanced up as Mickcame to sit beside her, laying a weathered hand over hers.For a long moment they simply gazed into the crackling flames, nowords needed to convey what they both already knew. At last Marysighed, patting Mick's hand gently. "It's time, isn't it?"Mick nodded, throat tight. "The land told me. All things must pass."A tear rolled down Mary's cheek, tracing a familiar furrow. "We knewthis day would come. But oh, how I'll miss them!" She wiped her eyeswith the back of her hand. "The house will be so empty without thepitter-patter of little feet and the laughter of grandchildren.""They'll always remain here, in our hearts and in the land," Mick saidsoftly. "Just as we'll remain when it's our time to embark on the finalharvest."

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 101www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini20.Mary smiled then, eyes crinkling fondly. "You and your poetic soul. Butyou're right - our legacy will live on, as eternal as the turning of the earth."She squeezed his hand, gazing into the fire once more. "We were blessedwith a lifetime and family beyond imagining. Now we mustguide the little ones to their final rest, and keep their memory alive in thewhispering fields."The clock chimed a lonely tune, marking the passage of fleeting hours.Mick and Mary simply sat, taking comfort in the silence and in each other,listening as their lifetime of memories drifted through the crackling flames.The fields whispered of loss, but also of love, and an enduring cycle thattranscended even the final harvest.The midnight air was sharp and fresh, scented with the promise of change.Mick stood outside the farmhouse, gazing across fields shrouded in mist.His bones ached with a deep-seated weariness, but his heart was light.The Dancers had come and gone in a whirl of laughter and song, leadingthe Vagabonds into the hollow earth to join those who came before.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 102www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini21.Now only silence remained, vast and echoing. An ending, and a beginning.As Mick stood beneath the indifferent stars, a flicker of movement caughthis eye. A single firefly drifted through the gloom, its lantern pulsing like aheartbeat. It circled his head once, twice, before drifting off into the night.But in that fleeting moment he sensed a familiar presence, and smiled.His work was done. The fields were filled with wildflowers, and memoryrooted deeper than stone.With quiet footsteps he returned to the farmhouse and his waiting wife.Mary looked up from the fire and held out her hands in silent invitation. Hesettled beside her, threading their fingers together, sharing the warmth andsolace of touch.They had lived a lifetime and more. Now they could rest, secure in theknowledge that their legacy would endure far longer than flesh and bone.The fields would whisper their names until the end of days, keeping watchas they embarked on their final journey into the mist.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 103www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini22.The hollow earth welcomed its new inhabitants with a sigh, enfoldingthem in velvet darkness.One by one the Vagabonds drifted down through soil and stone,hesitant at first, then gaining confidence as the Dancers swirled aroundthem. Their spectral light cast flickering shadows over walls of packedearth, revealing an underground maze that stretched as far as the eyecould see.Eithne glided ahead, her wings a pale blur in the gloom. "Fear not, littleones," she whispered. "You have come home at last."A nervous titter ran through the ranks as they descended. But Eithnespoke true: this felt like home in a way the world above never had.There was shelter here, and solace, a place of stillness untouched bytime's decay.Gráinne brought up the rear, her crimson wings beating a steadyrhythm. "The Cillini await," she said. "Your final resting place, and the

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 104www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini23.beginning of new journeys."At her words a ripple of excitement passed through the company. Theend, and a beginning. Just as Mick had sensed in his fields, memorytaking root deeper than stone.One by one the Vagabonds broke apart, drifting toward tunnels thatcalled to them with voices soft as starlight. The Dancers lingered amoment, watching them go with pride and sorrow twined, then followedin their wake.The hollow earth welcomed its children home. An ending, and abeginning, as it had always been. The cycle turned again, eternal as themist.The tunnels wound on into darkness, sloping ever downward. Strangeshapes moved through that darkness: not the Vagabonds, but older,wilder things with eyes that gleamed like foxfire in the shadows. TheFair Folk greeted their new companions in voices soft as falling leaves,

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 105www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini24.welcoming them into the secret heart of the hollow land.Eithne flew at the head of her charges, scattering stardust to light theirpath. There was wonder in her, and grief, to see so many fragile livescut short. But she took comfort knowing they would find peace here inthe dreaming dark, and pass beyond into deeper mysteries.Gráinne sensed her sister's sorrow, and the ache that lived inside her.She reached out to clasp Eithne's hand, felt the delicate tracery of veinsbeneath her skin."Do not mourn, dearest one," Gráinne said gently. "They are free now,as they always should have been. No more will they know hardship orheartbreak under sun and moon."Eithne leaned into her touch. "I know," she whispered. "Yet still I grievefor the lives they might have lived, the joy and wonder of discovery, ifonly they'd been given the chance. The world above can be so cruel."

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 106www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini25."As it has always been." Gráinne sighed. "But here there is an end tocruelty. An end, and a beginning, as the wheel of seasons turns oncemore."Eithne smiled through her tears. "Ever you speak wisdom, sister. Ourcharges will find peace at last in this place of stillness. And we shallwatch over them, as we have done since time began.""As we shall do until time ends," Gráinne said softly.And so the Dancers flew on into the dark, guardians of the hollow land,keepers of secrets lost to mortal memory. An ending, and a beginning,as it had always been.The hollow land stretched endlessly before them, shrouded in velvetshadows.Here there was no day or night, no passage of seasons - only a deep,abiding tranquillity. Countless souls slumbered in this place, cradled in

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 107www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini26.the womb of the earth as they awaited rebirth.Eithne and Gráinne drifted through vaulted chambers filled with tinybones, hearing the echoes of lost lullabies on the chill air. Thousandsupon thousands of abandoned children rested here in silence, thosewho had never drawn breath or gazed upon the world above. TheDancers' heartaches threatened to overwhelm them, even after allthese long years. They could only offer solace through the grace of theirwatch, a vigil kept since time out of mind.At last they came to a halt, alighting on the threshold of an open tomb.Within, a single tiny figure lay curled on her side, pale and perfect as aporcelain doll. A dark fuzz of hair clung to her delicate skull, herrosebud mouth pursed in sleep.Eithne smiled through her tears. "Welcome, little one," she whispered."You shall know peace here, and when the wheel turns again, joy andwonder beyond imagining."

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 108www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini27.Eithne sighed, a breath like the rustle of moth wings in the dark. "Anotherharvest reaped," she whispered sadly. "When will the reaping end?"Gráinne brushed the child's cheek with a feather-light caress. "Rest now,small sister," she said gently. "We shall guard you well until you arecalled to wake once more."And so another lost soul came to its final haven, to slumber in thecompany of kindred spirits through the turning of ages. The Dancerssettled in to keep their watch, as they always had and always would. Anending, and a beginning, as it had ever been.The tomb yawned wide before them, rank and fetid. Within lay a tangleof tiny skeletons, remnants of lives cut short before they had scarcebegun.The Dancers stilled, bowing their heads. They knew each fragile form byheart, could trace the shape of every rib and finger bone. Here were theirlost sisters, taken too soon but always remembered. They had stoodguard over this place since the first small corpse was l aid to rest, and

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 109www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini28.they would remain until the ending of all things. are called to wake oncemore."And so another lost soul came to its final haven, to slumber in thecompany of kindred spirits through the turning of ages. The Dancerssettled in to keep their watch, as they always had and always would. Anending, and a beginning, as it had ever been.The tomb yawned wide before them, rank and fetid. Within lay a tangleof tiny skeletons, remnants of lives cut short before they had scarcebegun.The Dancers stilled, bowing their heads. They knew each fragile formby heart, could trace the shape of every rib and finger bone. Here weretheir lost sisters, taken too soon but always remembered. They hadstood guard over this place since the first small corpse was laid to rest,and they would remain until the ending of all things.Eithne sighed, a breath like the rustle of moth wings in the dark.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 110www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini29."Another harvest reaped," she whispered sadly. "When will the reapingend?"Gráinne rested a hand on her sister's slender shoulder. "When thewheel has turned full circle," she said. "When what was lost is foundagain, and new life awakens from death."A spark kindled in Eithne's luminous eyes. "Then there is hope," shebreathed. "Even here, in this place of shadows, hope endures.""As we endure," Gráinne replied gently. "Through all the long years, wehave kept faith that one day the light shall return. Our watch will not bein vain."Eithne smiled, faint yet radiant as the dawn. "Then watch we shall, mysister, as we always have."And so the Dancers kept their vigil, guarding the remains of innocencelost but n ot forgotten. They stood as they had stood for an age, and

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 111www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini30.would stand for ages yet to come: patient, silent sentinels in thedark.The air was cold and still. Not a breath of wind stirred the silencethat hung over the fields of Bunnakilla.Mick stood alone by the red door of his farmhouse, gazing out at thepatchwork of green and gold stretching to the horizon. His hands weregnarled and callused from decades of labour, but there was agentleness to his weathered face that spoke of kindness and wisdomearned through hard-won experience.His eyes lingered on the scarecrow guarding one fallow field. It waslittle more than a crude mannequin stuffed with straw, yet he fanciedthat its painted smile held a secret mirth, as though it knew things nomortal creature could comprehend.With a quiet sigh, Mick filled his pipe and struck a match. The flamecast a ruddy glow over his features, etching deep lines and shadowsthat shifted and danced as he drew smoke into his lungs.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 112www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini31.Exhaling a plume of fragrant mist, he let his gaze wander up to thevelvet sky. The stars were fading one by one as night slowly dissolvedinto the grey light of dawn.Somewhere in the distance, a cock crowed. The cry shattered thesilence like a stone cast into still water, ringing out over fields andscattered copses.Mick's eyes crinkled at the corners. The village was waking to greetanother spring day, as it had for longer than anyone could remember.Yet some part of him felt that this would be no ordinary morning.Change was coming to Bunnakilla—he could sense it in the chill air andthe muted twitter of birds.Whether for good or ill, he couldn't say. But he had the feeling that aftertoday, nothing would ever be quite the same.The Scarecrow had four arms not two. https://youtu.be/0sFDJcSiXCE

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 113www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini32.Instantly, he recognised Melissa in the Moonlight...The years had etched their mark upon the fey creature, silvering hishair and lining his face with care. But those eyes remained unchanged:ancient, knowing, and infinitely sad.Mick swallowed hard. "You've come for the children."It wasn't a question. He had always known this day would come, thoughhe had never dared to hope it might arrive within his lifetime.Melissa inclined his head. "The time has come to gather the lost onesand lead them to their final rest. But I cannot do this alone.""You want my help." Mick exhaled slowly. "Tell me what must be done.""The Cillini must be opened, and the remains of the innocent releasedfrom their tombs. Only then can I guide their souls to the place that wasmeant to be their home."

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 114www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini33.Mick gazed at the scarecrow, his eyes clouding with tears. "And theorphans? Will you take them as well?""They have found a new family here," Melissa said gently. "My task is todeliver those who never had the chance at life, not steal away lives thathave already begun."His voice softened. "You have given so many lost souls a home in yourheart, Mick O’Connor. Now it is time to set them free."With a trembling hand, Mick brushed away the tears trickling down hisweathered cheeks. "Just tell me what I must do."Melissa smiled, and in that moment the scarecrow seemed to comealive. "We have a harvest to reap," he said, extending one spindly arm."Shall we begin?"Mick clasped the proffered hand without hesitation. "Aye. Let's be off."

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 115www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini34.The sky was growing lighter with every passing second as they set offacross the fields together. Somewhere in the grey dawn, a cock crowedfor the second time.The air was chill and damp, heavy with the scent of turned earth andnew life. As Mick walked beside the scarecrow, a strange heavinessseemed to lift from his shoulders with every step. He glanced atMelissa, noticing for the first time the crown of wildflowers woventhrough the burlap and straw. Blue cornflowers, golden marguerites,poppies the colour of spilled wine—a riot of colour against the mutedgreens and browns."You've brought them with you," Mick said softly. "Haven't you?"Melissa inclined his head. "They would not be left behind. Each flowerbears the soul of a child, plucked too soon from this world. Today, theywill all be returned home."Mick swallowed hard against the lump forming in his throat and

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 116www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini35.quickened his pace. They had crossed three fields by the time the sunpeeked over the horizon, bathing the surrounding hills in a warm goldenglow. Somewhere in the distance, a flock of starlings rose from theirroosts, wheeling across the brightening sky in a churning cloud offeathers and song.At the edge of the fourth field stood a crumbling stone wall, obscuredfrom view by a thick tangle of brambles and gorse. This was one of thehidden places Mick had discovered as a boy, a secret gateway leadingto the old ruins of Bunnakilla church.He turned to Melissa, meeting the button-bright eyes peering out frombeneath the scarecrow's hat. "Here," he said simply. "This is the way."Melissa nodded. With a wave of one arm, the brambles and gorseparted as though swept aside by an invisible hand. Beyond, a narrowearthen path wound through stands of rowan and ash, emergingbetween the weathered stones of the church ruins. https://youtu.be/0sFDJcSiXCE

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 117www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini36.Mick ducked through the opening in the wall, heartbeat quickening aschildhood memories surfaced unbidden. How many times had heplayed among these ruins, pretending to defend an ancient fortressagainst invading armies? Those games of long ago seemed almostprophetic now, as if he had been preparing for this moment his entirelife.He strode into the center of the ruins and stopped before a largerectangular depression lined with moss-covered stones. Here, beneathgenerations of leaf mould and dirt, lay the entrance to the catacombs.And here, at long last, their harvest would begin.The air felt thick with unseen presence as Mick gazed into the depths ofthe catacombs. He took a deep breath, steadying his nerves, anddescended the rough stone steps with Melissa close behind.At the bottom of the stairs, twelve tunnels branched off into thedarkness. The Dancers were waiting for them here, an ethereal glow

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 118www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini37.limning their slender figures. Each tunnel held its own secret, a long-forgotten chamber filled with tiny bones and the lingering ache ofsorrow.Mick turned to his companions. "Are we ready?"As one, the Dancers inclined their heads. Melissa placed a stick-thinarm on Mick's shoulder, a silent gesture of support.Mick steeled himself and stepped into the first tunnel. His flashlightflickered over piles of small skulls and ribcages, the tragic remnants oflives cut too short. The hollow eye sockets seemed to stare at him insilent accusation, as if asking why it had taken so long for their sufferingto be remembered.He gritted his teeth against the swell of emotion and moved on to thenext tunnel. And the next. With each new chamber, the weight in hischest grew heavier, a profound grief tempered by simmering anger atthe injustice of it all.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 119www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini38.After the sixth tunnel, he paused to catch his breath, leaning against thedamp wall of the passageway. The Dancers had begun a slow,melancholy dance, their movements echoing the ebb and flow of sorrowthrough the catacombs.Melissa came to stand beside him, a silent pillar of comfort. "Do notlose heart," the scarecrow said gently. "We have come to bear witness,so that these little ones may finally know peace."Mick nodded, drawing strength from his friend's words. They still had along night ahead, but at the end of it, the innocents would rest easy atlast. He took up his flashlight and continued down the tunnel, guided bythe glow of the dancing Dancers and the steady beat of purpose in hisheart. The harvest was bitter, but the fruit would be sweet.The next chamber was different. As Mick stepped through the doorway,a strange chill crept over his skin. The tunnel opened into a vast,circular room, empty save for a single stone plinth in the center. But theair itself seemed alive with energy, thrumming against his senses like

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 120www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini39.the low drone of bees in a hive.Melissa let out a soft gasp. "There is old magic here."Mick nodded. He could feel it too, the residual power clinging to thesestones like cobwebs. "Druidic, perhaps. Or even older.""It is a place of sacrifice," said Eithne, her usually serene face etchedwith concern. "Great evil was done here, and powerful blood spilled."A shiver ran down Mick's spine. Whatever had happened in this room, ithad left a mark that endured through the ages. He thought of theancient peoples who had inhabited Ireland, and the dark rites they hadpracticed to appease their gods."We should not linger," Gráinne said, hand tightening around the hilt ofher sword. Her eyes gleamed with reflected torchlight, hard as cutglass. "There are still spirits here that have not yet passed on, and theymay not take kindly to our intrusion."

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 121www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini40.Mick glanced at the stone plinth, half-expecting to see a ghostly figurebound upon it, and felt another chill. "You're right," he said. "We'vedisturbed this place enough for one night. Let's move on."The Dancers resumed their dance, but now there was a urgency to theirsteps that echoed the quickening of Mick's pulse. Whatever secretsthese tunnels held, there were some doors better left unopened, somepaths better left untrod. He cast one final glance over his shoulder atthe chamber, now shrouded in shadow, and hurried after the others intothe waiting dark.The tunnels sloped deeper underground, twisting and turning like thebowels of some great beast. Mick struggled to keep his bearing, but theDancers moved with ease, their steps unerring even in the blackness.At last, Eithne halted, raising one spindly arm. "We have arrived," shesaid softly. Her antennae twitched, tasting the air. "Can you not feel it?"Mick breathed in deeply, and caught a faint whiff of decay that made his

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 122www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini41.stomach churn. But there was something else - a heaviness thatseemed to weigh upon his soul, a deep and abiding sorrow."Great evil was done here," Gráinne echoed, "and powerful bloodspilled." Her eyes glowed with a faint crimson light, piercing the gloom.Mick nodded, words failing him. He knew, without needing to see, thatthey had come upon one of the mass graves that Melissa had told himabout. How many innocent lives had been buried here, in this dark andsecret place?"We must begin the ritual," Eithne said softly. "The harvest is ready tobe reaped." She began a slow, rhythmic dance, her steps carvinginvisible sigils into the air. Gráinne joined her, moving in perfectsynchrony, their forms blurring and shifting in the dim light of Mick'storch.The other Dancers emerged from the shadows to join the dance,antennae waving and mandibles clicking an eerie, atonal chorus. Mick

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 123www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini42.stood transfixed, watching as they wove their magic. There was a pulsebuilding in the air, a thrum of power that resonated in his bones.The mass grave trembled. Cracks spiderwebbed across its surface,deepening and widening until a pale, emaciated arm thrust up from theearth, grasping at nothingness. A skull emerged, jaw creaking open in asilent scream.The dead were rising.Mick stared in wonder and horror as the broken, skeletal forms ofinfants and children dragged themselves from their tomb, animated bythe magic of the ritual. The harvest was ready. The lost souls had comehome at last.Mick steadied himself against the wall of the crypt, overwhelmed by thesight before him. The dead children were staggering to their feet, paleflesh hanging off brittle bones, eye sockets empty and dark.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 124www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini43.Eithne glided over to him, laying a cool, chitinous hand on his arm. "Donot be afraid," she said gently. "We are giving these poor souls achance to live again, if only for a moment. They deserve to know loveand joy before they pass on to the next life."He took a deep, shuddering breath and nodded. She was right. He hadto stay strong for the children.The skeletal forms were dancing now, moving with a jerky,uncoordinated grace as the magic animated them. Their jaws hungopen in silent laughter, ribcages twisting and jumping. The Dancers flewaround them, weaving light and laughter into the air.A small girl lurched up to Mick, clutching at his trouser leg with bonyfingers. He knelt down slowly, meeting the empty sockets of her eyes."There now, little one," he said softly. "Ye're safe now. No one will hurtye anymore."The girl cocked her head, as if listening. Then a smile crept across her

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 125www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini44.skull-like face, fragile joy lighting her dead eyes. She grasped his handsin her own and began to dance, pulling him into the whirling magic ofthe ritual.Mick laughed, tears stinging his eyes, and danced with the dead girl inhis arms. The hollows of her bones were light as air, but he could feelthe spark inside, the soul coming alive again for one perfect moment.The harvest was reaped, the lost souls brought home at last. Tonight,they would know joy.The dancers spun faster and faster, a whirl of light and laughter. Theskeletal forms leapt and cavorted around them, their bones knittingtogether and flesh blossoming as Mick watched. In moments, thehollow-eyed skulls were round baby faces, the fragile ribcages plumptoddlers tumbling across the grass.Mick swung the little girl high, marvelling at her delighted shriek. Whenhe s et her down again, she was a chubby three year old with wispy

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 126www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini45.blonde hair and bright blue eyes. She grinned up at him, two dimplespeeking out from her cheeks."Thank you, kind sir," she lisped, curtsying with the awkward grace of achild. "You've given me my life back."Mick's eyes stung. "No thanks needed, little one. Now off ye go, andlive this life with joy."The girl beamed, waved, and ran off to join the other children. Inmoments, she had vanished into the crowd of laughing boys and girlschasing each other across the field.Mick watched them go, a bittersweet ache in his chest. So much loss,so much pain distilled into this one perfect moment of joy."It's time," Melissa said softly, coming to stand beside him. "Your workhere is done. You can rest now, Mick O'Neill."

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 127www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini46.He nodded, eyes tracing the silhouettes of children against the goldensunset. "Aye," he said. "I can rest now."Melissa took his hand, her touch light and cool. The Dancers gatheredaround them, their insect wings buzzing a soft counterpoint to thechildren's laughter.Mick smiled, feeling lightness seep into his bones, and stepped forwardinto the waiting darkness.The septic tanks were dark, dank places. Some still held remnants oftheir grim purpose - tiny skeletons trapped in cages of bone, scraps ofcloth and flesh clinging to them.Mick moved through the vaults with Melissa and the Dancers, the stinkof decay and death heavy in the air. His steps echoed hollowly, arhythmic beat to accompany the whispers and cries of lost soulstrapped in this place.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 128www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini47.Eithne drifted ahead, her wings a pale glow in the gloom. She pausedbefore one alcove, tilting her head as if listening. Then she glancedback at Mick, eyes luminous in her delicate face."Here," she said softly. "One lingers still."Mick came to stand before the alcove. A tiny form lay within, barelymore than a bundle of rags and bones. But in his Sight, he could seethe faint glimmer of the soul still clinging to its ruined body."Poor mite," he murmured. He reached out, and for a moment, hisgnarled farmer's hands became smooth and strong again. Gently, hegathered up the little body and its weary soul.The child's spirit stirred, blinking open eyes of the deepest blue. Shegazed up at Mick, recognition and wonder dawning in her expression."You've come for me at last," she whispered.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 129www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini48.Mick's eyes stung. "Aye, little one. Your wait here is over."The girl smiled, relief and joy chasing away the shadows in her eyes. "Iknew you'd come. My angel told me you would.""Did she now?" Mick glanced over at Eithne, who smiled and duckedher head. "Well, seems your angel was right."The little girl yawned, nestling into the warmth of his arms. "Will youtake me to the golden fields now? Angel says it's so lovely there.""The loveliest place there is," Mick said gently. "Now close your eyesand sleep. When ye wake, you'll be dancing in the golden fields.""Thank you," the child whispered. Her eyes drifted shut, and her spiritslipped free of its ruined shell, taking the form of a little girl with blondehair and sky-blue eyes.Mick held the tiny body for a moment more, t hen surrendered it to the

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 130www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini49.waiting dark. He turned away, wiping his eyes, to see Melissa and theDancers waiting."It's time," Melissa repeated softly. "Your harvest is gathered. Comenow, and rest."This time, Mick did not hesitate. He walked into the light of his friend'ssmile, and left behind the septic tanks that had held their grim secretsfor so long. His work was finished at last.The golden light enveloped Mick as he stepped through, warmth andpeace embracing him. He blinked, and found himself standing in a fieldof wildflowers under an endless blue sky.Laughter drew his gaze to a group of children playing in the distance,their forms flickering between human and the bright-winged creaturesthat were their true selves. His heart swelled at the sight, joy andsorrow mingling. So many lives cut short, but given a second chance tolive and laugh as children should.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 131www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini50."You kept your promise."Mick turned to find Melissa standing beside him, gazing at the childrenwith a fond smile. "You brought them home.""Aye," Mick said softly. "Took me a while, but I got there in the end.""You always do." Melissa clasped his shoulder. "Come, now. You'veearned your rest, and there are loved ones waiting to greet you."Mick followed his old friend through the golden fields, the laughter ofchildren echoing behind him. His work was done, the harvest gatheredat last. Now he could rest, and be at peace amidst the wildflowers ofElkendon.Mick gazed out at the golden fields stretching before his farmhouse,shadows dancing across the hay as clouds drifted through the morningsky. His chest ached with a deep and abiding sorrow, one that hadlingered for years since Melissa's final visit.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 132www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini51.So much had changed since that day. Ireland had emerged from thegrip of poverty and unbending religious doctrine, the old ways fadinginto memory. But for Mick, time had stood still in this quiet place.He drew a shaking breath, steadying himself against the doorframe.Even after all these years, the mere thought of that day could bring himto his knees. The images flashed through his mind unbidden: followingMelissa through echoing halls and crumbling stone corridors, gazingupon row after row of tiny skeletons left behind in the septic tanks ofthose grim workhouses.So many lives cut short, but given a second chance under endless blueskies. He could still hear their laughter drifting on the breeze, joyful andcarefree as children should be.Mick ran a weathered hand over his face, brushing away tears that fellunheeded. His work was done, the harvest gathered at last. But thesorrow remained, an old wound that would not heal.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 133www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini52.He gazed out at the fields once more, shadows dancing across hisvision. Some days he wondered if it had all been merely a dream, bornof age and fading memory. Yet in his heart, he knew the truth. Thewildflowers still bloomed in Elkendon, and the children played on underboundless skies.His time would come, as it did for all men. But for now, he would cling tothe memories that lingered: of golden light, and laughter, and a dearfriend who had shown him the way home.The pale sun struggled to break through gathering clouds as Mick madehis way outside, leaning heavily on his walking stick. His joints achedwith cold, protesting the early hour, but some habits were hard to break.After all these years, he still found solace in the familiar ritual of fillinghis pipe, the worn motions as soothing as an old lullaby. His fingerstrembled slightly, age-spotted skin stretched thin over knobby knuckles,but the tobacco soon filled the bowl in a cascade of brown flakes.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 134www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini53.He struck a match against the side of the house, cupping gnarled handsaround the flame as he coaxed the pipe to life. The first breath ofsmoke was sharp and bitter, but the second tasted of nostalgia.Mick sighed, gazing out at the fields that had been his livelihood for solong. Now brambles choked the once-fertile soil and thistles rose in asea of decay. The scarecrow still stood watch in the distance, raggedand slumped with time, but it brought him a wistful smile.Somehow it seemed a fitting memorial for all that had come to pass.The figures that once danced in his memory had faded into shadow,voices grown distant with the passing of the years. But here in thisplace, for a moment he could almost see them again: wildflowersblooming under open skies, and laughter drifting on the wind.His reverie was interrupted by a trembling cough, harsh in the morningstillness. Mick winced, pressing a hand to his chest as he struggled tocatch his breath. When the spasm finally passed, he leaned heavily onhis walking stick, suddenly exhausted.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 135www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini54.The fields swam before his eyes as pain lanced through his chest oncemore. He blinked back tears, gazing up at the scarecrow that had bornesilent witness to so much.After all this time, it seemed a fitting end. The harvest was gathered, thefields lay fallow, and age had worn away all but the deepest grooves inmemory. He smiled through the pain, eyes tracing the scarecrow'sragged silhouette.Melissa was waiting. The children played on under open skies.It was time to go home.The red door creaked open behind him as Mary stepped outside, ashawl draped over her shoulders against the chill. “Mick? Come inside,the kettle’s boiled and your breakfast is getting cold.”He didn’t turn, staring across the fields with eyes that saw another placeand time. “The fields are calling me, Mary. I have to go.”

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 136www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini55.“What are you talking about?” Her voice sharpened with concern as shecame to stand beside him. “You’re not well enough to be out in thiscold. Come inside immediately.”“I’m sorry, Mary.” He laid a hand over hers where it rested on his arm.“You’ve been the light that guided me home all these years, but thepath is dark now and I can’t see the way back.”“Don’t talk like that.” Her fingers tightened around his arm. “You’re notgoing anywhere. I won’t allow it.”“You can’t stop time, Mary. No one can.” He sighed, gazing out atshadows dancing between the trees. “The wildflowers are bloomingagain, and I have to go.”“There are no wildflowers, it’s too early in the season.” Her voice shookas she stared at him. “Mick, please. I don’t understand what’shappening. You’re frightening me.”

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 137www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini56.“Hush now, there’s nothing to fear.” He drew her into his arms, holdingher close as tears streamed down her cheeks. “It’s alright. I’m goinghome.”The fields were calling him. Distant music drifted on the wind, anachingly familiar tune from long ago. He smiled through his tears,brushing a kiss against Mary’s hair.“Take care of the children for me. I have to go, but I’ll be waiting foryou.”The light was fading as he walked away into the fields, following thesound of laughter on the wind.The fields stretched before him, vast and empty under a sky ofdeepening indigo. An owl hooted softly in the distance, its cry like amournful lament echoing through the dusk.Something caught in the corner of his eye and Mick turned, peering into

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 138www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini57.the shadows. For a moment he thought he glimpsed a pale, slenderfigure standing at the edge of the field, clad all in black with hair like acurtain of night. Then it was gone, vanished into the gathering dark.His heart pounded as he quickened his pace. The tune drifted closernow, a lively jig played on a tin whistle and accompanied by childishlaughter. He broke into a run, boots pounding against the earth as heraced toward the sound.There, in the field ahead, a bonfire crackled beneath a scatter of stars.Figures danced in a ring around the flames, slender shapes with insectwings and eyes that glowed like embers in the firelight. Half a dozenchildren capered at their sides, chasing one another in a wild, joyfulgame.Mick slowed to a stop at the edge of the firelight, tears blurring hisvision. He rubbed a hand over his eyes and gazed at the scene beforehim in wonder. The dancers were as he remembered, eternal as the

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 139www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini58.changing of seasons, forever young and ageless.One of the figures looked up, noticing him there. It was Eithne, hersmile like the dawn breaking as she caught sight of him. She saidsomething to her fellow dancers and they turned as one, regarding himwith eyes full of warmth and welcome.Eithne glided toward him, gossamer wings shimmering, and took hishands in her own. “You kept your promise,” she said softly. “You cameback to us at last.”“I’m home,” he whispered.She drew him into the firelight, into the circle of dancers. Laughter andmusic enveloped him as he was swept up in the revelry. The childrencrowded close, gazing up at him with eyes like his own. He gatheredthem into his arms, blinking back tears and smiling.After all the long years, he was home.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 140www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini59.The fields stretched out under the pale light of dawn, mist clinging to theground in wispy tendrils. Something caught Mick's eye as he gazed outthe kitchen window, a flash of colour amid the muted greens andbrowns.He stepped outside, pulling the door shut behind him with a creak. Thechill seeped into his bones, but he paid it no mind, walking with slow,purposeful steps toward the scarecrow in the north field.As he drew closer he frowned, brow furrowing. The scarecrow had fourarms, not two, and they were moving in a graceful, intricate dance. Heblinked hard, certain he was seeing things, but the vision remained.A smile crept across his face as realization dawned. "Melissa," hebreathed, quickening his pace.The scarecrow turned, and he was greeted with a familiar pair oflaughing blue eyes in a face as ageless as his own. "You're late,"Melissa chided, eyes sparkling with mirth. "Did you think I wouldn't

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 141www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini60.come for you?""I had my hopes," Mick admitted, "but I didn't dare believe..." He shookhis head, words failing him.Melissa stepped down from the wooden post, straw tumbling away intothe mist. "Your hope was not misplaced," he said gently, folding Mickinto an embrace. "I told you I would come for you when your time wasfinished. Did you doubt me after all these years?""Never," Mick whispered, clutching at the worn fabric of Melissa's coat."I just thought perhaps...perhaps I didn't deserve such kindness. Notafter everything.""Hush." Melissa gripped his shoulders, holding him at arm's length to fixhim with a stern look. "The past is done. Your penance has been paid infull. It's time to come home, Mick."Home. The word resonated in Mick's soul, stirring memories of laughter

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 142www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini61.and music in a fire-lit glade. He gazed into Melissa's eyes and saw hisown joy reflected there, felt the weight of years fall away into the mist."I'm ready," he said.Melissa smiled, bright as the dawn, and took his hand. "Then come.Your family awaits."The mist swirled around their feet as they walked, clinging to Mick'sboots and Melissa's bare toes. Somewhere in the distance, a lone birdchirped a melancholy tune and the first fingers of sunlight peeked overthe horizon, staining the sky with pink and gold.Mick kept his gaze fixed ahead, afraid that if he looked back, he mightlose his nerve. The fields of Bunnakilla had been his home for overeighty years, but they held only fading memories now, a life thatseemed to belong to someone else. He had built an empire here, raisedeight children and mourned his beloved Mary, carved out a legacy thatwould endure long after he was gone. But all things must end.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 143www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini62."This is not an ending," Melissa said gently, giving his hand a squeeze."Only a beginning."Mick smiled, hearing the echo of his own thoughts. "You always didknow me too well.""One of my many talents." Melissa flashed a teasing grin. "Are youready?"They had reached the edge of the mist, a wall of pale grey thatobscured everything beyond. Somewhere in that veil lay a hidden gladeof laughter and music, a place out of time where his family waited towelcome him home.Mick drew a deep breath, tasting rain and moss and leaf-mould, thefamiliar scents of magic. "Aye," he said. "I'm ready."Melissa raised their joined hands and stepped into the mist. The worlddissolved into s wirling grey, damp tendrils caressing Mick's face, and

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 144www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini63.for a moment he was blind and weightless, adrift in the void.Then the mist parted, and he blinked at a sight he had feared he mightnever see again.Golden sunlight dappled an emerald glade, falling across a ring ofstanding stones that encircled a worn stone altar. His children playedamong the trees, still young and carefree as he remembered them, theirlaughter like music.Mary stood in the center of the glade, her smile as radiant as the dawn."There you are," she said softly, opening her arms. "I've been waitingfor you."Overcome, Mick rushed into her embrace. The void released him,setting him down in a place at once familiar and strange.Home.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 145www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini64.The glade was alive with magic. Golden motes of light drifted on thebreeze, and impossible birds flitted from tree to tree, their song an echoof his children's laughter.Mick held Mary close, breathing in her scent of lavender and peat-smoke, achingly familiar. How long had it been since he last touchedher, since they were parted by death? Decades, in the waking world,but here time flowed differently. In this place he could almost believethey had never been apart."You're crying," Mary said gently, and brushed a tear from his cheek.Her hand was warm, the touch as tender as he remembered. "Therenow, no need for tears. We're together again, and that's all thatmatters.""I missed you," Mick said, his voice rough. "More than I can say. Therehasn't been a day gone by I didn't think of you.""Hush now." S he kissed him, a soft and lingering press of lips. "No

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 146www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini65.more loneliness, no more sorrow. We have all the time in the world, andour family is together again."His children gathered around them, a riot of bright eyes and laughter,tugging at his sleeves to get his attention. He gathered them close,blinking back tears as he pressed kisses to each beloved head."Da's home!" they crowed, jostling for space in his arms. "You cameback, just like you promised!""That I did," Mick said. He met Melissa's gaze over the sea of delightedfaces, saw his own joy reflected there. "And I'll not be leaving again."The glade, the stones, the impossible birds and golden light--all were adream, he knew. But what did it matter? Dreams could be beautiful too,and he was content to lose himself in this one, in the laughter of hischildren and the warmth of Mary's embrace.Home at last, and always. What more could he ask?

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 147www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini66.Mick spun Melissa around and around, laughter spilling from his lips.The Dancers swarmed around them, buzzing with delight, and hischildren chased each other through the grass, shrieking with glee.For a moment, he felt weightless and free of care, as if all the longyears of sorrow and hardship had never been. There was only joy now,joy and the fierce love swelling inside his chest as he held Melissaclose.At last he set her on her feet, though he kept an arm around hershoulders, unwilling to relinquish her warmth and nearness. "You'rereally here," he said wonderingly. "You came back.""Did you doubt that I would?" Melissa's tone was light, teasing, but hereyes were soft. "You should know by now that I always keep mypromises."He shook his head. "Not that. Only that...it's been so long, and so much

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 148www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini67.has changed. I thought perhaps...""What? That I had forgotten you?" She clicked her tongue, giving him astern look, though her expression quickly softened into a smile. "Youknow better than that, Mick O'Neill. You're my dearest friend--how couldI ever forget you?""I've missed you," he said again, throat tightening. "More than I cansay.""I know." She squeezed his hand. "But we're together now. No moremissing, no more sorrow. Today is a day for joy."The Dancers swirled around them, a riot of colon and sound, and hischildren came rushing over to tug at his sleeves again, clamouring forhis attention. He gathered them close, blinking back tears as hepressed kisses to each beloved head."You're really staying this time!" they crowed. "You won't go away

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 149www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini68.again, will you Da?""No, my darlings, I won't be leaving you again." He met Melissa's eyesover the sea of delighted faces. "I'm home for good now."Melissa laughed, the sound like chiming bells, and extended all fourarms to embrace them. "And so am I! No more wandering for this oldsoul. I've found my family at last."The children cheered, overjoyed, and Eithne landed on Mick's shoulder,winding her delicate arms around his neck. "You kept your promise,"she whispered. "You brought us home."He clasped her hands, blinking back tears. "Aye, I did. And now herewe all are, together again at last."Gráinne swooped down to join them, wings buzzing, and bumped herforehead against his in affection. "No more sorrow," she said fiercely."No more loss. We have eternity ahead of us now, and we'll face it side

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 150www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini69.by side as a family, the way it was always meant to be.""A family," he repeated wonderingly. He gazed out at the riot of colourand sound surrounding them, the familiar figures of his wife andchildren mixed with the vibrant hues of the Dancers, and knew Gráinnespoke the truth. They had been fractured, torn apart for so long, eachadrift on their own solitary path. But now the cycle was complete, thecircle mended, and they were whole again.Home. Family. Love. They had weathered every loss and sorrow, andemerged transformed but unbroken. Now at long last they weretogether, their great Harvest gathered in, every precious soul restored.The lonely wandering was done. They had come home to Bunnakilla tostay.The morning sun filtered through the dusty barn windows, dappling thefloorboards in golden light. Mick sat with his back against a hay bale,Melissa curled contentedly in his lap, while Eithne and Gráinne loungedbeside him, their insectoid l imbs intertwined in a tangle of chitin and

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 151www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini70.gossamer."Tell us a story, Mick," Melissa said, her voice drowsy and soft. "Onefrom the old days. We have all the time in the world now, so make it along one."He smiled, running a hand through her fiery hair. "The old days, is it?Well now, let me see..."His gaze grew distant as the tale began to unspool in his mind, carryinghim back through the veil of years to a time when he was a young ladon his father's farm. The Dancers nestled in closer, enraptured by thesound of his voice, as familiar to them as an old lullaby."It was the year of the great frost, when I was just nine years old..." Thedetails emerged slowly at first, then faster and faster, painted in wordsfor his rapt audience. The crackle of ice underfoot, the stark beauty ofthe frozen fields, the warmth of the hearth on a bitter winter's night. Thelaughter of his brothers and sisters, all together under one roof for the

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 152www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini71.holidays, without a care in the world beyond each new snowball fightand sledding adventure.He spoke of his mother's cooking, the house filled with the aroma ofstews and breads and pies, and his father's stories by the fireside, talesof myth and magic that fuelled his imagination. The chores andsquabbles of daily life on the farm, each small moment burnished to abright glow in the reflection of memory.The Dancers listened as the meandering story stretched on through themorning and into afternoon, content in the soothing cadence of Mick'svoice. There was no need to go anywhere, no urgency except to remainas they were: together, and at peace. The Harvest was gathered, thefields were full of wildflowers, and at Bunnakilla all was right with theworld.The golden sunlight filtered through the barn walls, dappling the dirtfloor and hay bales where they sat. Mick drew on his pipe, wisps ofsmoke curling around his weathered face as he gazed into the past.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 153www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini72."It is but the middle of March!" he said at last, shaking his head with arueful chuckle. "The harvest I speak of is the gathering of precioussouls, gone to earth far too soon."At his words, the Dancers stirred, antennae quivering. They knew thisharvest well, had gathered its bitter fruit in ages past. The hollow placesunder hill and plain, the unmarked graves of the innocent and outcastdead.Mick turned to Eithne, her multifaceted eyes gleaming withunderstanding. "You'll come with me to the cillín at Bon Secours. 'Tistime to bring home the Black Rose."Eithne dipped her head, wings fluttering in assent. Beside her, Gráinnebared her mandibles in a fierce grin, hand tightening around the hilt ofher sword. The warriors would stand guard over this harvest, as theyhad so many times before.The old farmer rose with a creak of joints, knocking the dottle from his

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 154www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini73.pipe. "Well then. Let's be off."The Dancers fell in behind Mick as he strode from the barn into the palesunlight. A strange procession to any observer, but those who mightstare or question wisely held their tongues. There were older powers atwork here than they could possibly understand.The cillín lay on the far side of the village, a gloomy plot of land with afew crumbling headstones and a rusty iron gate. Mick rested a hand onthe gate, eyes closed, and felt the whisper of countless lost soulsstirring beneath the earth."Roisin Dubh," he called softly. "The Black Rose. It's time to comehome."There was a tremor in the ground, a rattling of bones. Then a singleblack rosebud pushed its way up through the soil, unfurling into a bloomof velvet petals and a deep, aching scent.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 155www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini74.The Black Rose had awakened, and the harvest was begun.The petals of the Black Rose curled back, revealing a yawning portalinto the underworld. Cold, fetid air rushed out in a blast of decay andsorrow.Mick took a deep breath and descended into the abyss, the Dancersclose behind. His lantern cast a dim glow over a sea of small skeletonsand withered corpses, the forgotten dead of centuries past. But there, ina far corner, was a newer grave. A small, crude casket, and within—Roisin Dubh. The Black Rose herself, a girl of no more than five or sixyears. Her body was pale and perfectly preserved, as though she hadonly just closed her eyes in sleep.Mick brushed a stray curl back from the girl's face. "It's time to wake upnow, a chuisle. Your family is waiting."The girl's eyes fluttered open, clear blue in the lantern light. She peered

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 156www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini75.up at Mick with a trusting, guileless gaze."Da?" she asked softly.Mick's heart clenched. He thought of his own daughters, his beautifulgirls, and for a moment could not speak."Not your da, cailín beag," he said at last, voice rough with emotion."But I've come to take you home."The girl considered this with all the solemnity of a child. Then shenodded and took his hands, allowing him to lift her from her grave.The rose portal yawned wider, and figures began to emerge—pale,silent children clutching threadbare stuffed animals or tattered blankets.An endless parade of lost souls wandering back into the world of theliving, nine thousand strong.The Harvest had begun in truth. A reckoning long deferred, a balancingof scales.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 157www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini76.children had been returned to the world. But some doors, once closed,would not open again until the end of days.The children were dispersing into the countryside now, wandering off insmall groups to find their way home. The fields were no longer empty.Laughter and shouts rang out where before there had only beensilence. The land was waking from its long slumber, stretching andyawning as the sun crested over the horizon in a blaze of gold andcrimson.Mick sank to the ground, limbs leaden with exhaustion and emotion. Butunderneath the weariness was a deep sense of peace. The old wrongshad been righted, the old debts repaid. The harvest was gathered in atlast.Melissa settled beside him, a comforting presence at his side. Togetherthey watched the sun rise over Bunnakilla, casting its first golden raysacross the newly blooming black rose fields.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 158www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini77.Mick guided Melissa slowly to the cattle barn, his 'office', as he thoughtof it. The old wooden door creaked open, dust motes swirling in the dimlight that filtered through the weathered slats.Melissa's hand was firm on his arm, a steadying presence. Mick's heartswelled with affection for his old friend as they crossed the thresholdtogether. How many times had they stood here, making plans for someharebrained scheme or another? Always Melissa there to drag him intothe midst of some nonsense or trouble he'd have been better offavoiding.And yet. Here they were again.Mick lowered himself onto a hay bale with a grunt, joints protesting themovement. But it was good to sit, to rest his aching legs. He looked atMelissa expectantly, waiting to hear what final grand purpose his friendhad devised for them.Melissa leaned against the wall, arms folded, regarding Mick seriously.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 159www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini78."You know why I'm here, don't you?"Mick sighed, rubbing a hand over his weathered face. "I do, though Iwish it were not so."Melissa nodded. "The time has come to make things right. To gather inthe harvest and lay the past to rest.""Must it be so?" Mick asked softly. "Can we not leave the dead to theirrest?"Melissa's eyes gleamed, twin stars in the dimness. "We meddled inaffairs not meant for mortal men. We must make amends."Mick stared at his hands, gnarled and scarred from decades of hardwork. Hands that had wrought both good and ill. "Aye," he said at last."So we must."He raised his eyes to meet Melissa's, seeing his own resignation

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 160www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini79.reflected there. The path was set, the way forward clear.There would be no turning back.Melissa placed a comforting hand on Mick's shoulder. "Do not despair.Though the road ahead is long, you will not walk it alone."Mick looked up to see two figures emerge from the shadows. Eithneand Gráinne, the Dancers who had accompanied them on so manyadventures. Eithne's antennae twitched as she inclined her head ingreeting. Gráinne grinned, mandibles clicking, and gave a mock salutewith one of her spear-like forelimbs.Despite his melancholy, Mick couldn't help but smile. "It's good to seeyou both again.""We would not miss this final journey for anything," Eithne said softly.Gráinne stomped one of her three-toed feet. "An end to this waiting and

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 161www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini80.watching. At last, we ride to war again!"Melissa arched an eyebrow. "Not to war, my friend. To make peace."Gráinne snorted but said nothing more.Mick rose slowly to his feet with the aid of his walking stick. "Best wemake ready then. I doubt our task will be an easy one.""When has it ever been so?" Melissa replied wryly.Mick huffed a laugh. "Too true."The four unlikely companions, human farmer and insectoid warriors, setabout gathering supplies for the long journey ahead. Each lost in theirown thoughts, pondering the monumental task that lay before them.Righting ancient wrongs was never meant to be simple. But together,Mick knew they would persevere. They always had.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 162www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini81.The morning mist clung to the fields as Mick led his companions alongthe overgrown path toward the old workhouse. His joints ached morethan usual today, as if in anticipation of what was to come.Melissa floated at his side, all four arms folded serenely. "You feel ittoo, don't you? The weight of so many lost souls trapped beneath theearth, crying out for release."Mick nodded, throat tightening. He had always been sensitive to suchthings, much as he wished otherwise. To live so close to the veilbetween the worlds was both gift and curse."Once we free them, you will find peace," Melissa said gently."Will I now?" Mick grunted. "Somehow I doubt it'll be that simple.""Simple, no. But a beginning, yes."They walked the rest of the way in silence. The looming edifice of the

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 163www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini82.old workhouse seemed to mock them, daring them to uncover the sinsof the past.Mick steeled himself and hobbled through the rusted gates. "Well then,let's be about it."The Dancers fanned out on either side of him, a silent show of support.Gráinne hefted her spear, eyes gleaming with bloodlust beneath herinsectoid helm."Not yet, sister," Melissa chided. "First we must prepare the ritual."Gráinne dipped her head, chastened. "As you command."Melissa reached out two hands, offering them to Mick. "Will you joinwith us? Lend us your gifts so that we might pierce the veil?"Mick clasped Melissa's hands without hesitation. "You know I will."

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 164www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini83.The air around them began to thrum and crackle as Melissa wove hermagic. A kaleidoscope of colour and sound enveloped them,transporting them out of the physical world and into the realm beyond.The ritual had begun.They stood in a sea of souls: tiny pinpricks of light against a vast,endless darkness. So many had been lost here, abandoned andforgotten.Mick's heart ached at the sight. "So many wee ones. It's not right.""No, it is not," Melissa agreed. "Which is why we are here. To make itright once more."Melissa raised her arms and let out a piercing shriek that shook thefoundations of the void. The lights began to coalesce and swirl,gathering into a raging storm.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 165www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini84.The storm descended upon them, rattling Mick's bones and threateningto tear his aged body asunder. But he stood fast, lending Melissa hisstrength. The Dancers added their voices to the cacophony, adiscordant harmony that sang of loss and longing.The storm raged and twisted, condensing into forms both familiar andstrange: fairy children with moth-eaten wings, shadow creatures withneedle-sharp teeth, spectral beasts with the heads of lions and tails ofserpents. An army of the lost and forgotten, given shape once more.And at their head rode a pale, spectral woman in black armour: RoisinDubh, the Black Rose, astride a nightmare steed wreathed in flame.Her eyes glowed with the fires of vengeance as she raised a spectralsword and let out a battle cry.The army surged forward as one, pouring out of the void and into thephysical world. The ritual was complete.The lost souls had been found.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 166www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini85.Mick opened his eyes to find himself back in the cattle barn, propped upagainst a hay bale. His body ached, but his mind was clear and sharp.Melissa was gone, the scarecrow collapsed into a pile of rags oncemore. But Mick could still feel the power thrumming in the air, an echoof the ritual that had torn open the veil.He struggled to his feet and made his way outside. The sun was high inthe sky, bathing the farm in golden light. By all appearances, it was anordinary day.Yet Mick sensed a change in the rhythm of the world. A subtlequickening of time, a barely perceptible shift in the flow of magic. Thelost souls had returned, slipping into the streams and hollows andbarrows of the land. An unseen army, waiting to be awakened oncemore.Mick smiled, leaning heavily on his walking stick. His part in this grandstory was coming to an end. But he could rest easy, knowing that

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 167www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini86.Roisin Dubh and her spectral army stood guard over the land. Keepingwatch through the long dark of night, until the stars wheeled in the skyonce more and a new sun rose to greet a new day.Across Ireland, a strange stillness had descended. In crumblingworkhouses and overgrown churchyards, ancient spirits stirred fromtheir slumber. Whispers rustled through the undergrowth, carried on thewings of unseen creatures. The air itself seemed to thrum with power,as if the land was holding its breath.In a hidden glen in the Wicklow mountains, the stones of an old cillínbegan to glow with an eerie light. The earth trembled and split apart,disgorging a ragged host of shadowy figures.Eithne watched with tears in her compound eyes as the dead crawledfrom their graves. Fragments of memory and emotion filtered throughher consciousness, a tapestry of sorrow and loss. She could feel theache of empty arms, the gnawing pain of hunger in a barren belly. Griefand fury rose in her chest like a scream.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 168www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini87.Gráinne stood at her side, bristling with rage. Her chitinous limbsgleamed as she summoned a blade of psychic energy, ready to avengethese broken souls.A pale, wraith-like figure emerged from the cillín, clutching the rottedremains of a tattered shawl. Her eyes, two pits of endless darkness,turned to gaze at Eithne.Eithne’s voice was gentle as she addressed the specter. “Roisin Dubh.We have come to awaken your army, so you may claim vengeanceagainst those who wronged you.”A bone-chilling keen rose from Roisin Dubh’s throat, echoed by thespirits spilling from their tombs. The Black Rose lifted her head and letout a piercing shriek that shook the stars from the velvet sky.The Wild Hunt had begun.Mick stood before the crumbling stone archway of the cillín, transfixed

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 169www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini88.by the spectral army amassing before him. His heart ached at the sightof so many lost souls, their anguished faces a reflection of Ireland’sbitter past.He thought of his own children, safe and warm in their beds, and griefthreatened to overwhelm him. How many mothers had stood where hestood now, watching their babies being lowered into unmarked graves?How many lives had been swallowed up by poverty and cruelty?Roisin Dubh drifted to his side, her ghastly face twisted in a rictus ofrage. “We ride to avenge the forgotten dead. We ride to claim justice forthe innocent lives lost to greed and hypocrisy.” Her voice rasped likedry leaves skittering over stone.Mick rested a calloused hand on her insubstantial shoulder. “Iunderstand, a chroí. My heart burns with the same anger at the unjustworld that cast you aside.”The specter leaned into his touch, a flicker of warmth returning to her

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 170www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini89.lifeless eyes. In that fleeting moment, Mick could see the young womanshe had once been, full of laughter and light.His vision blurred with tears as he gazed at the army of spectersawaiting their commander’s order. Tonight, the Wild Hunt would ride toconfront the dark sins of the past. Tonight, the forgotten dead wouldhave their vengeance.Roisin Dubh straightened, throwing back her shoulders, and let out abone-chilling shriek. The spectral army erupted into motion, thunderingforward into the night. Mick watched until the sound of pounding hoovesfaded into silence, a faint smile creasing his weathered face. The deadhad found their justice at last.Mick turned away from the empty field, a heaviness settling over hisheart. His part in this night's work was done, but the memories wouldhaunt him until his dying day.Aoife and Eabha emerged from the shadows to flank him, their

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 171www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini90.multifaceted eyes glowing with concern. He offered them a wan smileand patted their slender shoulders. "Do not fret, mo chailíní. I will bewell enough."They continued on in silence through the predawn gloom, the onlysound the crunch of gravel under their boots. When they arrived at theCillin, Mick sank to his knees before the mound of freshly turned earth.Tears streamed down his cheeks as he whispered a soft prayer for thesouls laid to rest within.After several minutes, he rose on creaking joints and made his way tothe crude stone marker at the head of the mound. He ran his fingersover the words carved into its surface, weathered by time but stilllegible: Roisin Dubh, the Black Rose.Aoife glided to his side and slipped her hand into the crook of his elbow."Your pain honours her memory. She will never be forgotten so long asyou still weep for her."

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 172www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini91.Mick gazed down at the fairy, a sad smile tugging at his lips. "Youspeak true, a stór. The dead may ride to vengeance this night, butRoisin Dubh will live on forever in my heart."He stood in silence, watching as the first golden rays of sunlight peekedover the horizon. A new day had dawned, bringing with it the promise ofhope. The shadow of the past still loomed, but for now, he would let thewarmth of the sun chase away his sorrow. Roisin Dubh's memorywould endure, as would his quest to defend the forgotten dead. But inthis moment, he simply breathed deep the scent of dawn and foundpeace.The Pied Piper strode through the gnarled oak wood, his silver pipestrilling a haunting melody that resonated deep within the bones of theearth. His ragtag band of dancers followed in his wake, their footstepsechoing the beat of some ancient, primal drum.Eithne drifted at the head of the procession, her gossamer wingsshimmering in the dappled sunlight that filtered through the forest

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 173www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini92.canopy above. Though her delicate features remained impassive, aprofound sorrow emanated from her in waves, as if she were a conduitfor the anguish of centuries past.Behind her came Gráinne, her chitinous armour creaking with everystep. Of all the dancers, she alone bore the stamp of a soldier, her verydemeanour a challenge to any who might stand in their way. Hercompound eyes scanned the wood for signs of danger, yet herthoughts, like Eithne's, were turned inward.Aoife and Eabha brought up the rear, their whispers soft as the rustle ofleaves. What secrets they shared, what comfort they offered eachother, Mick could not say. But he sensed the deep bond between thetwo dancers and drew strength from it, as he always had. They were hisstalwart companions, now and forever bonded through their quest tosuccour the lost souls of Eire.The procession wound through the forest and out into a rolling meadowdotted with wildflowers, their petals still wet with dew. Somewhere in the

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 174www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini93.distance, a cuckoo began its mournful cry, as if heralding their coming.Mick glanced skyward, watching as a murder of crows took flight fromthe bare branches of an oak. Nine thousand lost souls. The crows roseas one, their ragged silhouettes stark against the pale blue sky.The Pied Piper played on.The meadow stretched before them, vast and empty. No breeze stirredthe grass or rustled the leaves. An eerie silence had fallen over theland, as if all the world were holding its breath.Mick stood at the edge of the wood and waited. His heart swelled withanticipation and sorrow in equal measure. So many lives cut short, somany futures unfulfilled. But today they would be gathered home at last.Today the wildflowers would bloom.A faint tremor shook the earth, followed by a rustle of movement in thegrass. Mick blinked, and for a moment the meadow was filled with the

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 175www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini94.pale, transparent figures of children. Then they were gone.Another tremor. The grass parted, and a single wildflower emerged—adelicate blue blossom unlike any Mick had seen before. It unfurled itspetals to the sun, and within its depths, Mick glimpsed the face of achild.All around the meadow, wildflowers burst from the earth as the lostsouls returned. Blue blossoms and pink, white and gold, a sea offlowers swaying in a silent, eternal dance. The children had come homeat last.Mick fell to his knees, overcome with awe and joy and grief. Thedancers gathered around him, their eyes glowing with reflected wonder.The Pied Piper's tune had reached its end. His task was complete.A faint, distant shriek rang out as the crows took flight once more,blotting out the sun. The wildflowers would bloom forever under thedark, unending night.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 176www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini95.And WOE to anyone who would ever come against them!The crows descended upon the meadow in a black cloud, cawing andshrieking. Mick scrambled to his feet as the dancers spun into motion,blades of grass and leaves twisting around their limbs to form armour.The wildflowers trembled and hid their faces, retreating into the earth.The crows fell upon the dancers like a plague, a storm of beaks andclaws. But for every crow that landed, two more arose tangled in vinesand thorns. The grass lashed out, whipping and snaring the black birds.A crow broke through the fray and snatched at Eithne, dragging her intothe air. Mick roared and charged forward, slamming his walking stickinto the crow with all his might. It tumbled to the ground in a flurry offeathers, and Eithne crawled free, battered but unbroken."Enough of this!" Gráinne bellowed, thrusting her hands into the air. Thecrows shrieked in terror and pain, writhing as thorns pierced their wings.With a tremendous flap, the entire murder took flight at once, fleeing for

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 177www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini96.the horizon.Silence fell over the meadow. Mick leaned heavily on his walking stick,chest heaving. The dancers limped to his side, bruised and bloodied buttriumphant. The wildflowers peeked out from the earth once more, timidsmiles returning to their faces."The crows will not trouble you again," Eithne said softly. A fierce lightburned in her eyes. "They have learned to fear the wildflowers'guardians."Mick gazed out at the sea of blossoms, a swell of protectiveness andpride rising in his chest. "Aye," he said. "Woe to any who come againstthem."

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 178www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini97.The Song of the Wandering AengusI went out to the hazel wood,Because a fire was in my head,And cut and peeled a hazel wand,And hooked a berry to a thread;And when white moths were on the wing,And moth-like stars were flickering out,I dropped the berry in a streamAnd caught a little silver trout.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 179www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini98.When I had laid it on the floorI went to blow the fire a-flame,But something rustled on the floor,And someone called me by my name:It had become a glimmering girlWith apple blossom in her hairWho called me by my name and ranAnd faded through the brightening air.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 180www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3. Mar 1968 – Ireland, Cillini99.Though I am old with wanderingThrough hollow lands and hilly lands,I will find out where she has gone,And kiss her lips and take her hands;And walk among long dappled grass,And pluck till time and times are done,The silver apples of the moon,The golden apples of the sunW.B.Yeats.

Cell - 181www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells“Suffering”The state of undergoing pain2. Spring/BeingArtist – Enya / Cell – Only TimeArtist – Sinead O’Conner / Cell – Nothing Compares 2 U

Cell - 182www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of CellsThe cover he it slowly turnsWith slender tapered fingersSwirling characters upon green leavesAnd upon each word he lingers4. Apr 1916Artist – Bjork / Cell - BacheloretteArtist – Celine Dione / Cell – The Heart Will Go On

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 183www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells4. Apr 1916 – Atlantic Ocean, Titanic 1.It is 3am, Michael O’Neill and his younger brother Jack have not been home, but have been celebrating Jack’s 13thBirthday, in a few of the Sneem bars (Jack was so big and strong he could easily pass for 18), and this morning of April 10th, 1912, they are heading off to Cork, and Queenstown. As the following day, they will surely be boarding the White Star Liner RMS Titanic, to seek their fortunes in the gold-paved streets of the America’s. They have no money and only the clothes on their backs, but they are both slick with the playing cards, and will gamble some ‘borrowed’ heirlooms… Ma and Da would have had a mind to lash the hide off the pair of the sorry vagabonds, scoundrels that they were…! But God love them, and keep them safe from harm.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 184www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells2.In early 1908 a mighty Berg had calved off the western coast of Greenland, a full 22,000 years since it had fallen as snow on that land. Now, a further four years later, it had drifted slowly south, gliding like a Majestic Swan, into the Atlantic Ocean.Estimated when it sank the Titanic, to be 400 feet in length, 100 feet above the ocean surface, and 1.5m tonnes in size. Its original size, when it calved, would have been about 1,700 feet long, and 75m tonnes in weight. In just a few weeks itwould melt into the mists, gone forever.The Berg had a profoundly disturbing countenance, as it silently sailed on to its inevitable, dreadful, and yet pre-destined rendezvous… A water-borne Abominable Snow and Ice Monster. 4. Apr 1916 – Atlantic Ocean, Titanic

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 185www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3.Michael and Jack arrived in Queenstown at around 7pm on Monday, April 10th… after walking and hitching lifts all the way from Kerry to Cork… about 90 miles in all… The Titanic being due to leave its final dock at 12:30pm the following day…Tuesday, April 11th.They were already in the ‘Jetty Bar’ eyeing the gaming tables. Although Poker was the gamblers usual‘choice of weapons’, in Ireland, however, 31 was a far more common implement.By 11am the next day, having played all night they were on their uncountable hand, and although both Michael and Jackwere somewhat expert proponents of 31, they were being soundly lashed by a mysteriously cloaked figure.4. Apr 1916 – Atlantic Ocean, Titanic

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 186www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells4.There were two other burly cattle-men at their table, both drinking heavily, and cursing through all of the previous hands.Suddenly they both stood pulling long knivesfrom their belts. One called out the cloaked figure as a ‘cheat’, “Open your palms flat on the table !” He hollered.As quick as a flash they plunged, pierced, and pinned a left and a right hand through the table with their knives,laughing… they reached forward and pulled up the cloaked figures sleeves, and out ran a pair of Aces…! One wrangler then drew a long barrelled pistol. But, before he could use it, the cloaked figure had revealed a second pair of hands. With them he pulled out the knives,and in a second they were buried hilt deep, in the chests of the two ‘begorrahed’ wranglers… “Begorrah!” they both exclaimed, as they fell to the waiting floor.4. Apr 1916 – Atlantic Ocean, Titanic

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 187www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells5.“Come boys !” He’d shouted to Michael and Jack. “We have a boat to catch !”…No one stopped them as they raced from the bar to the White Star Line Office. In an instant the cloaked figure had purchased three third-class tickets, and they were all racing for the Jetty…Michael and Jack did not even challenge the stranger as they boarded, they just could not believe their good fortune to have met him…. For they were now aboard the Titanic, tickets in hand, and it was away ‘Wesht’ with them both… Next stop… The America’s… !Then, all too quickly, everything changed….Near midnight on the 14thApril, Boat met Berg, and all Hell broke loose… For its Gates swung wide.4. Apr 1916 – Atlantic Ocean, Titanic

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 188www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6.The screaming, the klaxons bellowing, the scramblefor all too few lifeboats…. Michael saw a young girlpushed through the rails, he jumped into a thousand knives,blacked out, and woke in the icy water, choking and thrashing.He was alongside the Berg… The stranger was standing above him, then grabbing his one arm with four, heaved him, and the child (she would become ‘Oisin Gorm’), onto the Ice… Michael was now deaf in both ears. When suddenly he saw Jack being pulled into a lifeboat full of women, children, and gentry. The 18 year old, Lady Madeleine Astor, quickly passed Jack her shawl, and beckoned he cover his head, lest the Officers pull him from the lifeboat. All else were Stills, like the Cells of a Movie film… The band playing. The boat splitting in two, then sliding below the waves… Suddenly he was in the body of a great ‘Glowing Leviathan’, with beyond a thousand other souls. The child, a Chinese girl, was still in his arms, sobbing… But they, for now, were all indeed ‘safe from harm’…! 4. Apr 1916 – Atlantic Ocean, Titanic

Cell - 189www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells“Suffering”The state of undergoing pain2. Spring/HavingArtist – Horslips / Cell – The Snow That Melts The SoonestArtist – LeAnne Rimes / Cell – The Rose

Cell - 190www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of CellsLords of War tore that landThe tyrants of the WestWith hearts so black and crimson handsThe stealers of happiness5. May 1968Artist – Mark Bishop / Cell – Like A Songbird That Has FallenArtist – Ava / Cell – You Are Home

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 191www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells5. May 1968 – Ireland, Sneem1.Michael sat by the fireside in his farm at Bunnakilla,empty pipe in hand. It was nearly morning, but he had not slept. For his limbs ached even more than usual, and his chest was very tight. Hence, he was yet to light his pipe.He knew his time was near, the day he would have to let his Spirit slip, and fly away.He put on his hat and coat, pinning his military medals to the lapel, and collected his stick. Calling into the house his two dogs, Spot and Shep, he bid them to “Stay!”, and, “You cannot go where I am going my lads!”.Never being one for saying goodbyes, he walked slowly, with his stick, down the lane from the house. He turned right at the pond, and headed for the hill of Corrig.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 192www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells5. May 1968 – Ireland, Sneem2.When he reached Corrig, he walked up its gentle Northern slope to the summit. From there were clear views of his farm, and his neighbour‘s, John Francis, farm, and off to the West, the Atlantic Ocean.The Sun had just begun to rise over thetops of the trees, and the birds were singing. When those birds suddenly stopped...Perched on the roof of the haybarn was an enormous owl, its wings spanning the entire roof ! Michael didn’t even flinch, for he recognised the owl as ‘Mute’, the Fool’s ‘Companion’, in one of its many guises. Michael bowed to Mute in recognition and welcome. Hopping across to Corrig, Mute opened his beak and Michael stepped inside.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 193www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells3.In an instant Mute took to the sky following Michaels unspoken directions. Up over the ‘Mulloch’, (the mountain behind Michaels farm), then on to Sneem, but beyond, and up to the Waterfall, at Lady’s Lake.This was one of Michael’s treasured places, where, in their early years, he and his wife Mary, would think nothing of walking up the six miles from Sneem, with a simple picnic of Sour Dough bread, butter, jam, and perhaps some homemade wine. It was a place they kept as a very special ‘sanctuary’ just for themselves. All of their children had respected that.As Mute set Michael down, the Fool was waiting for him in a ‘Naomhog Currach’ or Little Holy Boat, by the bank of the Lake.“Time to pay the Ferryman!”, smiled the Fool.5. May 1968 – Ireland, Sneem

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 194www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells4.As Michael reached the edge of the water, he unclipped the Medals from his lapel, and passing them to the Fool, he said… “My Toll My Friend.”, and the Fool returned…“Brother to Brother, Yours in Life and Death.”Michael stepped into the back of the boat. There lay a picnic basket with Sour Dough bread, butter, jam, and a great flagon of Guinness ☺Michael smiled as the Fool touched four oars into the water, (with just as many hands). The Lake, the source of the Sneem River. “It’s the Blue Wake to Sneem, and beyond to Elkendon!” laughed the Fool, giving Michael time to share the breakfast. Then, with a mighty punt by the Fool, on all four oars, they were heading down the mountainside to Sneem. In just minutes they were at the village. Passing under Sneem bridge, the boat and its precious cargo, simply faded into the rolling smoky-white morning mists, then disappeared… 5. May 1968 – Ireland, Sneem

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 195www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells5.Johnno was the first one downstairs, as he heard Shep and Spot howl…He knocked, and going into ‘The Room’, now his fathers bedroom, (as the stroke had made it too difficult to climb the stairs). There Johnno could not wake his father…Knowingly, Johnno kissed his fathers brow, and went to raise his mother Mary, but she was already halfway down the stairs.“He’s gone hasn’t he?”, her voice faltering.“Yes Old Woman, he’s gone!”.They sat there together on either side of Michaels bed, for what seemed an eternity, holding each others hands, and each a hand of Michael. A river of unspoken tears… The Great Grandfather Clock ticking loudly by the door“Goodbye Cushla!” Cried Mary. “The Beat of My Heart!” 5. May 1968 – Ireland, Sneem

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 196www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6.Michael had passed on Wednesday 29thMay, and on Friday 31stMay, there was a wake at Bunnakilla. Michaels five daughters and three sons were there, as well as great throngs of relatives and friends, to pay their last respects. There were also dozens of rifle-bearing soldiers of the IRA, in full uniform. Mary asked them to lay away their guns, and cover their unforms, as four of her daughters, who were at the wake, now lived in England, and it could go badly for them. The funeral was Saturday the 1stJune, and it took eight men to bear the Coffin; Johnnie Charlie, Michaels three sons Johnno, Michael, and Patrick, and the husbands of four of his daughters, Joseph Troy, Jimmy Foley, Patrick Byrd, and Patrick Dennehy. But shunning the hearse, shoulder-high, they bore the Coffin the four miles, from St Michaels Church to the burial ground. Such was the great reverence and respect for this Mighty Man Mountain… Forever to be honoured and inscribed :-“Who was Once, Now, and Shall Forever Remain :-Michael ‘The Soldier’ Neill !”…05. May 1968 – Ireland, Sneem

Cell - 197www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells2. Spring/Thinking“Suffering”The state of undergoing painArtist – Paul-Louis Aeberhardt / Cell – Dinosaurs; The True StoryArtist – Klaatu / Cell – Calling Occupants Of Interplanetary Craft

Cell - 198www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of CellsThe bombs blew up the cemeteriesAnd the dead gave up their gravesCities burned and crumbledThen passed beneath the waves6. Jun 1947Artist – David Bowie / Cell – Space OddityArtist –David Bowie / Cell – Ashes to Ashes

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 199www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount Rainier1.Down the Black Corridor, Star to Star.Their Great Exodus had just begun…Elister was emersed in a chemical soup, wrapped inside a cocoon,alongside his mother and father. The onboard computers feeding themLanguage, Literature, Art, Numbers, History, Geography, Geology,Physics, Chemistry, Biology, and so much more…They left behind their home planet, Cairo, where raged a battle, a warof such magnitude, it was an annihilation!For in the enthralment of a vast ‘Brain’, the Great Animal Tribes of theZoological Gardens had yet escaped their Cages!Stretching their Maniacal Claws, and Spreading their Mechanical Wings, theywould consume the very Galaxy that was the Milky Way.The void stretched endlessly before the prow of the ship; an inky blacknessspeckled with the light of distant stars.Area51MtRainierRoswell

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 200www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount Rainier2.Elister stood at the helm, his gaze fixed on the rippling curtain of spaceahead. His limbs felt weightless in the zero-gravity chamber, adrift in theamniotic sea of chemicals that nourished his body.How long had they travelled this corridor between the stars? Time lostmeaning in the abyss, marked only by the steady throb of the enginesand the whisper of the life support systems.In the cocoons around him, his family slept. Their pale bodies floated inthe viscous fluid, skeletal and serene. He thought of his sister Atalia,who had always gazed at the stars with eyes full of wonder. She wouldhave delighted in this grand adventure.But for Elister, the Exodus brought no joy. They fled a war that hadravaged their home world, pursued by the remnants of the Great BeastTribes. His people had triumphed, but at tremendous cost. All thatremained of their planet was a dead husk, a grim monument to thecyclical nature of violence.Area51MtRainierRoswell

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 201www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount Rainier3.History repeated itself, Elister mused. The Beasts had overrun theGardens in ages past, only to decline into indolence and decadence,paving the way for his ancestors to emerge from the ruins.Now the cycle had turned again.A dull ache throbbed behind his eyes as he recalled the shimmeringspires of the Citadel of the Cat, reduced to rubble and ash. He sighed,and the sound echoed strangely in the chamber. So much knowledgeand beauty, lost to the hunger of the Beasts.The ship glided on through the inky void, bearing the last hopes of adying world toward an uncertain future. Elister stared into the dark,where strange constellations stretched across the sky, and dreamed ofthings lost and yet to be.Elister drifted in the chemical soup, adrift in memory and regret. Hismind wandered the ruins of the Citadel of the Cat, tracing a path wornsmooth by centuries of footsteps. In the Chamber of Whispers, he could almostArea51MtRainierRoswell

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 202www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount Rainier4.hear the echoes of ancient debates drifting through towering columns ofpolished stone. The scent of old books seemed to linger in the air, afaint musty fragrance beneath the sharper tang of ozone from theorreries that tracked the motions of sun and stars and planets.So much knowledge, stored in fragile vessels of paper and ink. Gonenow, devoured in a storm of atomic fire and claws.He sighed again, and the cocoon shifted around him. His limbs feltheavy and numb, lulled by the rhythmic pulses of the life supportsystems. It would be easy to surrender to that lassitude, to close hiseyes and drift into endless dreams of what might have been.But he couldn't rest. Not yet. They still had far to go, and dangers yetunknown awaited them. He had a duty to his people, a sacred trustupheld by generations of Watchers before him. The Citadel of the Catmight lie in ruins, but its legacy lived on in him. He would guide theExodus to a new home, and help his people forge a future from theashes of the past.Area51MtRainierRoswell

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 203www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount Rainier5.Elister summoned his will and forced his eyes open. The chamberswam into focus around him, shadows and halos of light glinting off thecontours of the cocoons. His family floated beside him, faces pale andserene in their chemical sleep. He reached out to brush a hand againsthis sister's cocoon, feeling the faint pulse of life within.They would make a new home, together. A place of safety, where thearts and sciences could flourish anew, and the Beasts remained but adark memory. The Citadel would rise again.Elister gazed into the dark and smiled. The future unfurled before them,filled with mystery and promise. The Exodus had begun.The ship glided on through the inky void, its hull creaking with thestresses of interstellar travel. Elister floated in the chamber, adrift in asea of dreams. Visions came and went, fragments of memory andprophecy swirling in his mind.Area51MtRainierRoswell

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 204www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount Rainier6.He saw the spires of the Citadel of the Cat piercing a violet sky, heardthe distant laughter of children at play in its gardens. Then fire and ruin,stone cracking and crumbling under the onslaught of flame. A shadowfell across the stars as the Beasts descended, their cries echoingthrough the rift.The vision shifted. A green world spun in the viewport, mantled in whiteclouds. Twin suns rose over rolling hills and grassy plains, their lightglinting off a winding river.A new Citadel took shape along the river's banks, grander and morebeautiful than the last. His people milled in its courtyards, clad in finerobes and speaking in voices unmarred by fear or grief.Peace. A haven at the end of their long journey.The promise of a new beginning.Elister smiled in his sleep and dreamed on.Area51MtRainierRoswell

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 205www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount Rainier7.The ship drifted out of the Milky Way and into the void betweengalaxies, stars thinning to a scattering of distant suns. The light of alienconstellations filtered through the viewport, dappling the cocoons withshades of rose and azure.They were far from home now, in a sea of night uncharted by theirastronomers. But the visions gave Elister hope. Their wandering wouldend, the Beasts left behind in the ruins of memory. The future was filledwith light.His people would walk under suns anew. The Citadel of the Cat wouldrise again.The stars streaked by in a wash of colour as the ship acceleratedthrough the void. Elister floated in the chemical soup, fed streams ofknowledge from the onboard computers.Numbers and calculations, the language of physics. Theories of lightand space and time. Equations that described the curvature of reality,the relationship between energy and matter.Area51MtRainierRoswell

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 206www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount Rainier8.Secrets of the atom, the bonds of molecular structure.A geography of the galaxy, star charts mapping the spiral arms. Thenames and positions of constellations, the bright pillars of hydrogen gaswhere new stars were being born.The Precession of the Equinoxes, and how the Great Animal Tribes hasorchestrated the homes history and civilisations, all now long vanishedinto dust. Theories of their arts, philosophies and sciences. Glimpsesinto lives lived even under other suns.The diversity of life, from microbes to sentient beings. Biologiesterrestrial and exotic, the unique properties of alien ecologies andevolutionary paths. Creatures that breathed methane or sulfuric acid,that floated on gas bags or swam in liquid methane seas.His mind absorbed it all, grasping connections between disciplines in avast web of knowledge. The more he learned, the more he realized howlittle he understood.Area51MtRainierRoswell

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 207www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount Rainier9.The universe was infinitely complex, endlessly nuanced.There would always be more to explore, an unending frontier ofmystery.He found beauty in that, a sense of meaning that transcended the lossof home.They were voyagers on a grand adventure, explorers of the unknown.The future was an open road wreathed in starlight, waiting to bediscovered.Elister smiled behind the cocoon's transparent membrane, adrift in theflow of information. He had never felt so alive.The vision of a new Citadel still lingered, a beacon of hope on thehorizon.They would find their haven.Area51MtRainierRoswell

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 208www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount Rainier10.The wandering would end. But the journey itself was a gift, and itslessons would shape the dawn of a new age.The stars streamed past as the ship slid into hyperspace, a twistingtunnel of light that bent space around them. Elister floated in theamniotic bliss of his chamber, adrift on the currents of knowledge.He saw the fall of empires and the rise of new ones, civilizations thatspanned galaxies collapsing into ruin. The cycle of birth and death writlarge against the endless dark, all things must pass into shadow.Yet still there was beauty to be found, moments of transcendence amidthe ruins. Art and music that endured, stories and dreams that lit theway forward.The light of insight kindled in each generation; a flame passed fromhand to hand through the long night.They were but one spark in a sea of stars, a mote of consciousnessadrift on the cosmic ocean.Area51MtRainierRoswell

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 209www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount Rainier11.But within them burned the fires of hope, a vision of a future stillunwritten. The Citadel was more than just a haven, it was a promise. Aplace to nurture the flames of knowledge and share its light with others.A chime rang through his mind as the ship dropped out of hyperspace.They had arrived at the outskirts of a new star cluster, a jewelled netcast against the velvet dark."We are approaching the Constellation of Centaurus," the ship's voiceechoed in his thoughts. "Your new home lies in orbit of the third star,Proxima Centauri."Something was wrong, The Constellation of Centaurus was merely 4.5light years from their home planet. They had already traversed 26.5thousand light years to leave their Milky Way Galaxy!Elister gazed both dazed and confused, out through the eyes of theship, wonder suffusing his mind. Somewhere in that glittering sea ofstars was meant to be a world of green and gold, a living world thatshould have become their own.Area51MtRainierRoswell

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 210www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount Rainier12.The future was calling them forward, a song of hope to light their wayhome.The ship glided into the Centaurus system, slowing as ProximaCentauri came into view.Elister leaned forward, searching for any sign of the planet that hadbeen promised. His heart sank as the star came into focus - Proximawas a small red dwarf, dim and angry. There were no planets in sight."Sensors detect no habitable worlds in this system," the ship confirmed."My apologies, the star charts I was provided seem to have beeninaccurate."Someone, or more likely something; “The Brain”, had tampered with theships guidance systems.Elister slumped back into the pilot's chair, a wave of despair washingover his mind.Area51MtRainierRoswell

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 211www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount Rainier13.They had travelled so far, endured so much, all for nothing.The hopes and dreams of his people seemed to crumble into ashes ashe gazed at that lonely star.In the cabin behind him, a child began to cry. He could hear the worriedwhispers of the others, feel their confusion and disappointment. Theyhad placed their trust in him, followed him into the unknown reaches ofspace toward a future that now seemed out of reach. He had failedthem.As Elister wrestled with his anguish, a flash of light caught his eye. Apinprick of silver in the veil of stars, brightening for a moment beforevanishing again. He blinked, unsure if he had imagined it, but there itwas again - a pulse of light from deeper in the cluster. His hearts leaptas the ship's sensors chimed in recognition."I detect an artificial structure approximately 3 light years from thisposition," the ship announced.Area51MtRainierRoswell

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 212www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount Rainier14."Energy readings suggest it is of considerable size and complexity.Shall I set a course to investigate?"Elister stared at the stars, hardly daring to hope. Not a habitable world,perhaps, but a sign of life nonetheless. A light to guide them out ofdarkness, a spark to rekindle the fires of faith. They were not alone."Yes," he whispered. "Take us there."The ship's engines hummed as it turned towards that glimmering star.Towards the unknown structure and whatever secrets, it might hold.Towards a new future, still unwritten.The structure came into view as they dropped out of lightspeed, a vastmetallic lattice floating in the void. Elister gazed at it in wonder throughthe front viewport, struggling to make sense of the alien design. It was a‘Moon-Builder”.Area51MtRainierRoswell

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 213www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount Rainier15.Massive rings encircled a central core, connected by spokes thatseemed almost organic in their curvature. Elister had been told storiesin his youth of such machine, but he thought them just myths. It waseven muted that his own planets two Moons, Fear and Dread, wereartificial."Sensors detect no activity within the structure," the ship reported."However, the materials and architecture suggest it was constructed byan advanced civilization. There are indications it may have served assome kind of vast construction device, or a transportation hub, possiblyfor interstellar travel."Elister nodded, transfixed by the sight. Who had built this place, andwhere had they gone? What worlds had they explored, what wondershad they discovered on their journey?A sudden flare of light disrupted his thoughts. One of the rings waspowering up, bathing the structure in a pale azure glow. Elister grippedthe edge of the viewport, his hearts pounding with anticipation.Area51MtRainierRoswell

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 214www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount Rainier16.What was happening? Were they no longer alone?But the light began to fade as quickly as it came. The ring dimmed toblack once more, and a heaviness settled over Elister's spirit. They hadcome too late - whatever life had inhabited this place was either yet tobe, or now long gone, leaving only echoes of its passing.The ship remained silent and motionless, as if sensing hisdisappointment. He sighed and ran a hand along the cool surface of theviewport. So much knowledge lost to the abyss of time. If only they hadarrived sooner...A flicker of motion caught his eye. One of the rings was turning like thewheel of some vast mechanism, grinding into motion after eons ofstillness. Elister stared as the ring completed a full rotation, then slowedand stopped.Silence. Stillness. But in that fleeting moment, a single ray of light hadshone through the ring onto the central core of the structure. And in thatcore, something had awakened.Area51MtRainierRoswell

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 215www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount Rainier17.Elister smiled into the sea of stars. They were no longer alone.The pale azure light bloomed once more, spreading along the rings ofthe ancient structure like veins. Elister gripped the edge of the viewport,his hearts pounding anew with wonder and apprehension. Whatmanner of being had they awakened? Friend or foe...or something elseentirely?He watched with bated breath as the central core began to glow,brighter and brighter until his eyes ached with the intensity. Just whenhe feared they would be blinded, the light coalesced into a pinpoint andvanished.In its place hovered a shimmering sphere, featureless andincandescent. It drifted forward to meet them, passing through the ringsof the structure as if they were little more than mist. It was a Moon!Elister stared into the depths of the sphere, wondering if some remnantof its consciousness yet remained.Area51MtRainierRoswell

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 216www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount Rainier18.If so, what would it make of them – strange creatures from a distantworld, journeying in their ship of silver and light? Would it greet them asfellow wanderers, or see them as trespassers in this ancient place?The sphere paused before the viewport, its radiance casting shadowsthat flickered and danced. Then a voice rang out, deep and sonorousas a temple bell:"You have awakened us from our slumber, yet you are not of the GreatTribes. What manner of beings are you, that travel between the stars?"Elister drew a steadying breath, sending a prayer to the virtual Elders."We come in peace," he said. "We seek knowledge and fellowship withothers who walk the path of stars."The sphere dimmed for a moment, as if in consideration. "Your quest isnoble," it intoned, "but not without peril. The way is beset with dangers,and there are those who would consume you, body and spirit." Its lightintensified.Area51MtRainierRoswell

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 217www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount Rainier19."Proceed with caution, wanderers, and keep your ship at the ready. TheGreat Tribes yet hunger, and you have entered their domain.“Elister bowed low before the sphere. "We thank you for your warning.May the light of your wisdom guide us on our journey."The sphere's radiance brightened to a blaze. "Go now to your Earth," itsaid. "We shall keep watch in this place until the passing of an age. Ifyou return, we will greet you as friends."With that, the sphere began to drift away into the inky depths. Elistergazed after it for a long moment, humbled by the knowledge they hadbeen granted. His people were not alone.He sensed something like a great leap, a fall from a vast height, like alift’s cables breaking. Then sudden stillness, the expected impact didnot come. Unbeknown to him and his fellow passenger’s they had fallenthrough a time-fold!Area51MtRainierRoswell

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 218www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount Rainier20.Elister turned to the viewport, there were a number of planets orbitingthis star, the craft Elister travelled in was a Mother Ship, with twelve‘Pods’.They entered the Solar System from the tail. Past the outer coldplanets, and the gas giants, as they reached the fourth planet from thestar, the ships bay doors opened, unbidden, and released three Pods.Elister frowned as he watched them burn through the atmosphere, anddescend to the planet’s surface. Then the third planet; the ‘Earth’, cameinto view, a blue jewel amid the stars."Take us in," he commanded.The ship glided forward, slipping into the planet's magnetosphere with afaint shudder. There next to the Earth sat that very Moon, though nowheavily pock-marked with impact craters.Elister's hearts swelled at the sight of the verdant world, and its Moonbelow.Area51MtRainierRoswell

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 219www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell21.After so long a voyage, they were finally here – a new home for hispeople, a refuge in a galaxy grown dark and perilous. Little did he know,but in time, that Moon, would become his solitary refuge.The ship slowed as it approached the Earth’s north pole, shimmeringlike a silver tear.They entered Queendom Elkendon at the Great North Pole Egress.The Mother Ship glided on through the green bubble-wall of ‘OldSmoky’. There was a great multitude on board, and Melissa was readywith a huge greeting party to welcome them all.Elister watched until the last had vanished into the swirling clouds, thenturned his gaze inward.The Mother Ship glided on through the green bubble-wall of ‘OldSmoky’. There was a great multitude on board, and Melissa was readywith a huge greeting party to welcome them all.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 220www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell22."Release the Pods," Elister said. "It is time."One by one, the Pods detached from the ship, gliding downward onthreads of anti-gravity, each piloted by an ‘echoed’ Elister.The Pods flitting and gyrating like butterflies in the air, each exuding amoist resin, and a different vibrant rainbow hue. The ‘Prime’ Elister’sPod was already descending, the familiar virtual presence of the Eldersguiding him down.As one the Pods froze, then shot off to the West.The Pod pierced the clouds, emerging into a vast wilderness of ice andsnow. Elister gazed in wonder at the terrain unfurling below – anendless expanse of white, broken only by towering mountains that roselike the ruined pillars of some ancient fortress.His Pod angled toward a mountain larger than the rest, wreathed instreamers of auroral light.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 221www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell23.At its summit yawned a vast crater, as though the peak had beenhollowed out by some tremendous impact.As his Pod descended into the crater, Elister gasped. The interior wasfilled with a sea of liquid water, its surface reflecting the sky above. Thevirtual Elders' voice echoed in his mind: "Behold - Tahoma, the ‘Motherof Waters’. Here shall your new lives begin."Elister smiled, blinking back tears. The journey was over. They hadcome home at last.The Pod slid beneath the surface of the lake, emerging in a vastunderground cavern filled with a riot of impossible colours. Luminescentfungi coated the walls, bathing everything in an eerie glow. Strangesymbols were etched into the stone, remnants of some ancientlanguage long forgotten.Elister stared in wonder as his Pod glided through a forest of toweringcrystal spires, their fractured surfaces casting prismatic shadows.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 222www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell24.The cavern opened into a massive chamber; its ceiling lost in darkness.At the centre of the chamber rose a towering ziggurat, a pyramid ofbasalt steps leading up into infinity.His Pod came to a halt before the ziggurat, settling onto the floor with asoft crunch. The virtual Elders' voice echoed once more: "Go forth,Elister, and greet your people. The way is open. Your destiny awaits."The Pod hissed open. Elister stepped out, boots crunching on theobsidian floor. The air was warm and heavy, rich with the scent ofminerals and ozone.Before the ziggurat stood a strange figure in a robe of shimmeringcobalt, their face hidden behind an onyx mask."Greetings, traveller, and welcome to the Hollow Earth," the figureintoned, their voice resonant and melodious."We have awaited your coming for an age. Melissa bids you enter, andreceive what has been promised."

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 223www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell25.Elister bowed low. "Greetings," he said softly."I am Elister, son of the Elders, keeper of the Pods. We come in peace,seeking sanctuary in this place our ancestors once called home."The robed figure inclined their head. "Your coming was foretold. Thesanctuary you seek is granted.Melissa welcomes their children home at last."The robed figure turned and glided up the steps of the ziggurat, theircobalt robes whispering against the stone.Elister followed, a strange mixture of anticipation and trepidationwarring within him.At the top of the ziggurat stood a massive throne of obsidian, veinedwith threads of gold.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 224www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell26.Upon the throne sat a cloaked and hooded figure, still and silent.The robed figure stopped before the throne and bowed low. "Thetraveller has come, as was foretold," they intoned. "Elister, son of theElders, keeper of the Pods, bids sanctuary for his people in this place ofold."The hooded figure stirred. "Sanctuary is granted," came the response,the voice low and sonorous. A dark, six-fingered hand emerged fromthe folds of the cloak, extending towards Elister."Welcome home, child of the stars. The cycles have turned, and nowthe lost shall come again to the cradle of their birth. We have awaitedyou for an age."Elister stared at the outstretched hand, his heart pounding.Summoning his courage, he took it in his own.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 225www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell27.A surge of power flowed through him, as memories flooded his mind:lush green forests and misty vales, rainbow waterfalls and meanderingstreams.Towering mountains of emerald, pearl, and gold, lit by a Triune sun.The shining city of Elkendon, within the Hollow Earth, with spires ofcrystal, and the warm embrace of loved ones lost for far too long.Tears welled in his eyes as the full realization struck him. He had comehome at last.Melissa’s hand tightened around his own."Be at peace, wanderer," they intoned gently."You have journeyed far, but now you have returned. Welcome home."Elister sank to his knees before the throne, clutching Melissa’s hand asthe tears flowed freely down his cheeks.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 226www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell28."Home," he whispered. "I'm home."Melissa enfolded him in their arms, and for the first time in longer thanhe could remember, Elister felt the light touch of peace.Elister then returned to the remaining nine Pods.As one they froze, then shot off to the West. Flitting and gyrated likebutterflies in the air, each exuding a moist resin, and a different vibrantrainbow hue.The Pods in unison dived into Lake Tahoma (Mother of Waters), inElkendon. Descending the depths, they emerged, popping the Earth’ssurface at the summit of Mount Rainier in Washington, USA.At that very moment there was an historic ‘intersection’. Thecommercial pilot Kenneth Arnold, destined for an air show in Oregon,had diverted his aircraft to Mount Rainier, in search of a missing plane.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 227www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell29.A Marine Corps C-46 transport airplane, as it had a $5,000 reward forthe person who found the wreckage. Scanning the slopes for any signof wreckage…Something caught his eye as a beam of sunlight glanced off a strange,metallic object drifting down from the summit. He blinked, unsure if itwas a trick of the light or his tired eyes playing tricks on him. But no,there they were - nine shimmering saucers skimming over the surfaceof the lake, trailing rainbow-hued mist behind them.Suddenly, as Arnold would later recall, he saw a bright light – just aflash, like a glint of sun as it hits a mirror when the glass is angled justso.And then the lights came again – this time, in a series. Nine flashes inrapid succession.Arnold calculated the entire assemblage was spread over an area ofover five miles. Flying like the tail of a Chinese kite.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 228www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell30.He calculated the time it took the objects to travel between MountRainier and Mount Adams, a distance of about 50 miles; a minute and42 seconds, which would mean the objects were traveling at 1,700miles per hour. Three times faster than any vehicle of that time wascapable of. More than twice the speed of sound.Chuck Yaeger only broke the sound barrier later that year.Arnold stared in wonder, hands tightening on the controls. His planedrifted lower almost of its own accord, mesmerized by the bizarre yetbeautiful sight. The saucers seemed almost alive, fluttering around oneanother in a delicate ballet, resin sparkling as it caught the sun.He shook his head to clear the fog that had settled over his mind. Whatwas he doing? He needed to get to the air show, not go chasing aftersome strange atmospheric phenomenon.Even as he thought this, the saucers froze in unison, hangingmotionless for a long moment.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 229www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell31.Then, as one, they accelerated westward and vanished into thehorizon.Arnold gazed after them for a long moment, still not quite believing hiseyes.He had always prided himself on being a rational, logical man, but therewas nothing rational about what he had just seen.His hands trembled slightly as he gripped the controls, turning his planeback on course. He didn't know what those objects were or where theyhad come from - but he was determined to find out.Whatever the truth may be, Kenneth Arnold knew that he had witnessedsomething extraordinary on that sunny afternoon above Mount Rainier.And he had a feeling that the world would never be quite the same.The bright flashes lingered in Arnold's vision, searing afterimages thatrefused to fade.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 230www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell32.His heart pounded as he struggled to make sense of what he had seen.Nine metallic discs, glinting like mirrors in the sun, moving impossiblyfast against the backdrop of the Cascade mountains. It seemed surreal,like something out of a pulp science fiction story.Yet his rational mind rebelled against such fanciful explanations. Therehad to be a logical reason for what he witnessed. Some newexperimental aircraft, perhaps, or a rare atmospheric phenomenonrefracting the light.But nothing could explain their sudden acceleration, or how theyseemed to hang motionless in midair before vanishing into the horizon.No human craft was capable of such feats, and the laws of physics ashe knew them had been utterly violated.Arnold shook his head, gripping the controls until his knuckles turnedwhite. He didn't know how it was possible, but in that moment, he wascertain of one thing: those objects were not of this world.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 231www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell33.A chill ran down his spine as the implications sank in. If his conclusionwas correct, it would change everything.Humans were no longer alone. An advanced alien civilization hadreached out from the depths of space, sending an unmistakable signthat we were being watched.The world would demand answers, and Arnold would be at the centre ofa storm unlike anything he had faced before. But for now, all he coulddo was stare out at the horizon where the strange craft haddisappeared, wondering if they might return.His future, and possibly the fate of humanity itself, depended on whathappened next in the skies above Mount Rainier.The air was eerily still in the cockpit as Arnold wrestled with what hehad witnessed.His instruments showed no anomalies, but he kept glancing over them,half-expecting the mysterious objects to reappear without warning.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 232www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell34.After several minutes of tense anticipation, he began to breathe easier.Whatever those things were, they seemed to have vanished as quicklyas they came. Still, he couldn't shake the feeling that he was beingwatched, or the memory of how they had hung motionless against theclouds.Defying all reason and explanation.As Rainier receded into the distance behind him, Arnold tried toreassure himself it must have been some secret military project. Aradical new aircraft design, still in the experimental phase. But eachtime he replayed the sight in his mind, the less plausible thatexplanation seemed.Nothing about their appearance or movements matched what he knewof aviation. And no branch of any military had technology thatadvanced—not even in their most classified programs.The truth was hard to accept, but impossible to deny.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 233www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell35.This was something beyond the known capabilities of human science. Aglimpse of the unknown, from a place far beyond our world.Arnold shook his head and gripped the controls tighter, urging his planeonward. He didn't know where those objects had come from or wherethey went.But he knew, with a strange mixture of fear and wonder, that he wouldnever forget them. Nor would he ever look at the sky in quite the sameway again.By the time Arnold landed in Yakima to refuel, word had already spreadabout his encounter. The airfield was abuzz with rumours andspeculation, though most still dismissed it as some kind of hoax ormisunderstanding.Arnold did his best to avoid the questioning gazes and hushed voicesthat followed him, keeping his answers brief and sticking to the facts.But the truth was, he had more questions than answers himself.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 234www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell36.As he took off again for Pendleton, the blue skies that had once filledhim with awe now seemed vast and empty. Haunted by shadows. Hefound himself scanning the horizon, half expecting to see those strangecraft emerge from the clouds once more.The sight of them had been burned into his memory—their gleamingmetallic bodies and the way they moved as if weightless, defying allknown laws of physics. Most of all, he remembered the feeling theyevoked in him. A mixture of dread and wonder that lingered still, like thelast fading notes of a forgotten song.By the time Arnold landed in Pendleton, news of his encounter hadspread even further. Reporters were waiting on the tarmac, camerasand microphones at the ready, eager to make him into a reluctantcelebrity.At first, he tried to avoid their questions, but soon realized there was noescaping the spotlight. And so, with the eyes of the nation upon him,Kenneth Arnold told the world about his encounter with the unknown.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 235www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell37.About nine mysterious objects moving faster than any aircraft known toman.The media seized on his description, dubbing them "flying saucers" - aname that would capture the public's imagination and launch aphenomenon whose end was nowhere in sight.It was a full two weeks later, when Elister gazed out the front viewportof his Pod, watching as the desolate Nevada desert unfolded beneathhim. His keen eyes scanned the horizon, searching for any signs of themilitary base that was his destination.Elister’s target was Area 51, a military base in the Nevada dessert Itwas a rescue mission, hence the 9 Pods.But Edwards Airforce Base in California was fully aware of hispresence, and had despatched three XP-84 Thunderjet fighters,accompanied by a single Consolidated Vultee XP-81.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 236www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell38.As Elister’s flock approached Area 51, the XP’s started to intercept.The onboard computer made Elister aware that these three XP fighterswere carrying Mark 7 nuclear weapons.The nine Pods divided into three groups, flying West, East, and Northrespectively.Area 51. A secretive complex shrouded in mystery and rumour. Elisternow knew the truth behind its existence, and what dangerous secretslay hidden within its borders. His new mission was to infiltrate itsunderground hangars and free the captive aliens being held thereagainst their will. How he had gleaned this information, he knew not, orit simply escaped him. It was as if these alien memories had beenplanted somehow sown in his two brains.As the Pod cruised soundlessly through the sky, Elister reflected on thefate that had brought him to this moment. He thought of his home world,

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 237www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell39.now lost to the ravages of war, and the exodus that had carried hispeople across the stars to find refuge on Earth.They had come in peace, seeking only a new home where they couldlive unmolested by the conflicts that had torn the galaxy asunder.Instead, they had discovered a world not yet ready to accept theexistence of extraterrestrial life.A world whose governments would do anything to possess theadvanced technology his people had brought with them.Betrayed and hunted, many of Elister's kin had been captured by themilitary to be studied and exploited. Now it fell to him to mount arescue, no matter the cost.In the distance, a glint of light caught Elister's eye. Squinting, he couldjust make out a cluster of hangars and outbuildings peeking out fromthe base of a rocky ridge -- the telltale signs of a large undergroundfacility.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 238www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell40.His heart quickened as Area 51 came into view, knowing this waswhere his mission would truly begin.The fate of his people depended on what happened here today in thisremote corner of the Nevada desert. Their future was now in his hands.The sky behind Elister erupted into flame as the fighters unleashed abarrage of missiles.He swung the Pod around in a sharp arc, narrowly dodging theincoming fire.The missiles streaked past, leaving trails of smoke across the azure skybefore exploding in midair.Betrayed and hunted, many of Elister's kin had been captured by themilitary to be studied and exploited. Now it fell to him to mount arescue, no matter the cost.In the distance, a glint of light caught Elister's eye. Squinting, he could

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 239www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell41.just make out a cluster of hangars and outbuildings peeking out fromthe base of a rocky ridge -- the telltale signs of a large undergroundfacility.His heart quickened as Area 51 came into view, knowing this waswhere his mission would truly begin. The fate of his people dependedon what happened here today in this remote corner of the Nevadadesert. Their future was now in his hands.The sky behind Elister erupted into flame as the fighters unleashed abarrage of missiles.He swung the Pod around in a sharp arc, narrowly dodging theincoming fire.The missiles streaked past, leaving trails of smoke across the azure sky before exploding in midair. The nine Pods divided into three groups, flying West, East, and North respectively.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 240www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell42.A single Thunderjet tracking each group. Elister’s conscience was in theNorthern three Pods.The Western group disappeared into the depths of the Pacific Ocean.The fighter to the East chased its 3 Pods all the way to the border ofKansas, where calculated, they flew directly into a Fujita Force 5Twister!Elister could have escaped vertically, as there was no ceiling to theheight of the Pods. But he was focused on reaching Area 51…Elister's Pod shook violently, nearly throwing him from the cockpit. His stomach lurched as he struggled to regain control of the craft. In the chaos, he caught a glimpse of one of the other Pods spiralling towardthe ground, leaking flames and debris. There was no time to mourntheloss -- his duty was to the living, not the dead.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 241www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell43.He dove beneath the fighters, skimming the ground and kicking upclouds of dust and sand.The base was growing larger in his viewscreen, massive hangars andantennae visible in startling detail. In a burst of inspiration, Elister aimedhis Pod for the base of a large radar dish, hoping to use it as cover toshake off his pursuers.The fighters were close behind, pelting his Pod with a relentlessbarrage of gunfire that left glowing craters in the desert floor.Elister gritted his teeth, pushing the engines to maximum speed. Hiscraft shuddered in protest but surged forward, narrowly slipping into theshadow of the radar dish.The fighters shot past, momentum carrying them forward as their pilotsstruggled to slow down and double back. Elister didn't hesitate,rocketing out from under the radar dish and making a beeline for one ofthe hangars. If his intelligence was correct, that's where the prisoners

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 242www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell44.were being held. He only had moments before the fighters regainedtheir bearings. It was now or never. His Pod crashed through thehangar doors in a shower of sparks and metal, skidding to a stop inside.The rescue had begun.Elister popped the hatch of his Pod and leapt out, scanning the hangarfor signs of life. The space was vast and dimly lit, filled with aircraft invarious states of disrepair. But in one corner, he spotted a cluster ofcells—and within them, a handful of figures slumped against the walls.His hearts swelled at the sight. The prisoners were alive, though theylooked battered and bruised. But before he could move towards them, abooming voice echoed through the hangar.“Don't move a muscle, spaceman.”Elister whirled around to find a squadron of soldiers in the hangarentrance, armed with vicious-looking plasma rifles. And behind themstood a man in a crisp military uniform, a nasty smile twisting his lips.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 243www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell45.It was the “Architect”, General Nathaniel Haskins. Elister gritted histeeth at the sight of this maniac, he who had orchestrated the attack onhis people. This was the man responsible for the destruction of hishome world.Rage flickered inside Elister, but he tamped it down. He couldn't affordto act rashly now, not with so many lives at stake. The soldiers' fingerswere tightening on their triggers, itching to open fire. He had to keepthem talking, at least for a few moments more.Elister raised his hands slowly, pulse racing. “I mean you no harm,General Haskins. I've come to negotiate the release of your prisoners.”Haskins let out a harsh bark of laughter. “I don't negotiate with yourkind.” His eyes glinted with hatred.“The only good Illegal Alien, is a dead Illegal Alien.”The soldiers tensed, preparing to attack on his command. Elister'shearts stuttered—but then a familiar warbling cry rang out, and a

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 244www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell46.shadow fell across the hangar doors.The fighters had returned, but they were no longer alone. An enormousshape descended from the sky, blocking out the sun: the Mother Ship.And at the sight of that massive bulk, General Haskins' face went ashenwith terror.The rescue had begun in earnest.The Mother Ship loomed overhead, a metallic behemoth blotting out thesun. Its shadow fell across the hangar like an eclipse, casting thesoldiers into darkness.Elister smiled thinly at the general's shocked expression. "It seems thetables have turned, General Haskins."Haskins sputtered in disbelief, hands clenching spasmodically aroundhis pistol. But his soldiers were already throwing down their weapons,paralyzed by the sight of the alien craft. They knew they wereoutmatched.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 245www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell47."Y-you'll never get away with this!" Haskins shouted, though his blusterrang hollow."I think you'll find that we will." Elister tilted his head, regarding thegeneral with cold eyes."Your weapons pose no threat. As for your prisoners..." He trailed offmeaningfully.The general paled, understanding the implied threat. If he didn'tcooperate, there would be nothing to stop Elister's people fromdestroying the base and everyone inside. Including the prisoners.Haskins deflated, shoulders slumping in defeat."What do you want?" he ground out."The release of our people, and safe passage off this planet. You haveno hope of stopping us, so I suggest you comply."

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 246www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell48.The general nodded jerkily. "Just take them and go."“A wise decision." Elister waved a hand, and the hangar doors rumbledopen. The other Pods swarmed inside, converging on the cell blocks tofree the alien prisoners.His task complete, Elister turned back to Haskins."Consider this a warning. Should your kind threaten ours again, we willnot be so merciful."With that, he strode toward the open hangar doors.The Mother Ship was waiting, a beacon of hope against the crimsonsky.Elister quickened his pace, a smile spreading across his face.The “Architects” alien prisoners all boarded the Mother Ship. Its baydoors closed, vanishing in the twinkling of an eye, into the heaven’s.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 247www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell49.They were going home.However, the fighter jet pursued Elister's three Pods as they racedeastward, pushing their engines to the limit.But even the Thunderjet's supersonic speed was no match for the aliencraft.Elister remained focused on his destination, though he kept the jet inhis peripheral vision.His hands danced across the controls, evading the occasional missileblast with ease.The flat farmlands of Kansas stretched endlessly below, an ocean ofamber waves and patchwork fields. As the terrain rushed by beneathhim,Elister's thoughts turned to the captives they had liberated from Area

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 248www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell50.51. After so many years apart, being reunited with his people had beena bittersweet joy.A flicker of light caught his eye, dragging Elister from his reverie. Anenormous storm cell was brewing to the south, black clouds swirlingwith menace. Tendrils of red and blue lightning crackled within itsdepths.Elister glanced at the Thunderjet in his wake, a plan forming in hismind. He tapped the control panel, redirecting his Pod toward thetempest. The others followed his lead, matching his course and speed.The jet pilot struggled to keep up, clearly confused by their suddenchange of direction. But he remained dogged in his pursuit, unwilling togive up the chase.Elister's lips curled into a grim smile as they plunged into the heart ofthe storm. His Pod shuddered around him, buffeted by winds strongenough to peel the paint from houses. But the craft held together,streaking through the maelstrom without slowing.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 249www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell51.The Thunderjet was not so fortunate. As it entered the storm, a bolt ofcrimson lightning struck its fuselage, sending the jet careening out ofcontrol. It tumbled end over end, breaking apart before crashing to theearth in a fireball.Satisfied, Elister guided his Pod up and out of the storm. The remainingPods emerged behind him, undamaged by their perilous journeythrough the twister.Area 51 was behind them. Home was waiting.Elister gazed ahead as the Pod cruised over the sparse desertlandscape, his thoughts drifting.The loss of their companion Pods weighed heavily upon him, theirsacrifice a reminder of the grave responsibility he bore. His people werecounting on him to see them safely home. In the distance, a smallfarming town came into view, modest homes

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 250www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell52.and barns clustered around a single main street.Elister's eyes lingered on a hand-painted sign greeting visitors to...Elister could not read it as he flew by so fast.His musings were interrupted by a deafening roar.Elister glanced up to see the remaining Thunderjet dropping out of theclouds, streaking toward his Pod. Before he could react, the jetunleashed a blast from its cannons.Elister's Pod lurched violently, struck by the scattershot. Flames eruptedacross the hull as the craft began to lose altitude, tumbling toward theground.Through the smoke and chaos, Elister spotted the last remaining Podswooping down on the Thunderjet. It collided with the jet in a flash oflight, as a bird of prey snatches a songbird in flight. The jetdisintegrated, shattered into a million fragments.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 251www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells6. Jun 1947 – USA, Mount RainierArea51MtRainierRoswell53.His last fleeting thoughts were of home, and of everything leftunfinished. Of his people, and the future that might have been.He had just reached the outskirts of a small farming town, when thefighter blasted his Pod and one other from the sky, with a scatter-gunattack.Elister struggled to regain control of his failing Pod, fighting to keep thecraft airborne. But it was no use.The ground rushed up to meet him at a sickening pace.The Pod slammed into the desert floor, crumpling like foil on impact.Silence fell over the wreckage, broken only by the crackle of flames.Elister could see, almost in slow motion, the third POD consume thefighter jet, as a bird might catch a fly on the wing. Exploding into afireball. He last remembered seeing a sign to his left saying …‘Welcome to Roswell’!

Cell - 252www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells“Sundering”Separate by, or as if by, violence, intervening with time or space3. Summer/FeelingArtist – Dust / Cell - ArchetypeArtist – The Beatles / Cell – Here Comes The Sun

Cell - 253www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralTOCTableOfContentsCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of CellsAt last the storm was endedSilence swooped and darkness was completeAnd Man the pride of HeavenToppled from his rich and golden seat7. Jul 1947Artist – Sam Tyler / Cell – Space ManArtist – Guardians Of The Galaxy / Cell - Starman

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 254www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico1.The wreckage of Elister's Pod lay scattered across the arid desertlandscape, shards of twisted metal glinting beneath the unforgiving sun.His pale, lifeless body was sprawled amid the debris, crimson pools ofblood congealing around the jagged edges of shrapnel that pierced hisivory flesh.For a fortnight Elister's echo had lain undisturbed, the scorching sunbleaching his bones. In the dead of night, coyotes had crept from thedarkness to sniff at his remains. Their hungry howls echoed across thedunes, a haunting refrain that seemed to whisper his name.When Mac Brezal stumbled upon the crash site, he could scarcelybelieve his eyes. He had been out checking fences along the back fortywhen he spotted a fire in the distance. At first, he thought it might be adowned aircraft. As he got closer, however, he realized this was noordinary plane crash.What strange craft was this, strewn about as if by some immense,careless hand? As he approached the wreckage his boot crunched onsomething brittle.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 255www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico2.He looked down to see a humanoid skeleton, picked clean byscavengers. But this was no human.The figure was tall and slender, with a narrow rib cage and elongatedlimbs. Its skull was hairless, eye sockets empty.Two strange craft lay mangled and burning, scattered across the desert.Mac rubbed his eyes in disbelief. He had seen nothing like them before.Then he spotted a figure lying motionless on the ground, partially buriedunder debris. Mac rushed over and dragged the figure free, haulingthem to a safe distance from the wreckage.It was a creature unlike any he had seen. Pale as bone, with a delicateframe and fiery red eyes. An alien being. Mac stumbled back, startled.But when the creature let out a pained groan, Mac steeled himself.Whatever this creature was, it needed help.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 256www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico3.He called in the Sherriff, and the Sherriff contacted the Roswell Armybase.Within the hour, military trucks were rumbling out of Roswell Army AirField, packed with soldiers ready to secure the site.As Mac led them to the crash, he wondered what they might find. Henever could have imagined the truth: that the alien's echo still lingered,clinging to life by the merest thread.And though its body was broken, its mind remained intact, awash inmelancholy dreams of loss and longing under distant stars.The soldiers approached the wreckage warily, rifles at the ready. Butthere was no sign of life aside from a few buzzards flapping heavily intothe air.As they searched the site, one man gasped and pointed to a strangesilhouette partly buried in the sand.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 257www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico4.It was a second alien figure, crushed beneath a massive chunk of debris. They dug it out and found a third body trapped in the remains of thecraft's cockpit, still strapped to its seat.The men stared at the strange creatures in uneasy silence.They were humanoid in shape, with pale, hairless skin and elongatedlimbs.But their anatomy was all wrong. There were no obvious organs orentrails, just a peculiar system of fibres and tubes beneath a surface assmooth as glass."Sweet Jesus, look at their eyes," someone whispered.The aliens' eyes were dim red embers, like dying stars. As the soldiersgazed into those uncanny depths, a chill crept into their souls.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 258www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico5.They seemed to gaze into an abyss outside of time, hinting at eons ofalien history forever lost to human understanding.But it was only a trick of the light. Within those empty sockets, no sparkremained.All that lingered there now was the echo of something ancient andprofound, like the memory of stars at the end of time.With gruff shouts, the commander rallied his men. They set to workmeticulously documenting the site.But as much as they tried to treat the aliens as just another job, eachsoldier felt the presence of the dead watching them with ageless,inhuman eyes.When every scrap of wreckage had been tagged and catalogued,All the wreckage was meticulously, and methodically, documented,

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 259www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico6.catalogued, and photographed, before being individually tagged,bagged, and loaded onto several military transport vehicles.Three ‘bodies’, were recovered, but only one still clung to life. All threewere given their own personal Sikorsky helicopter ride, the 700 miles toArea 51 in the Nevada desert.But these ‘bodies’ were not human, they were not even carbon, butsilicon ‘Echoes’.On the long drive, the alien in the cockpit seemed almost alive, its dimgaze turning to follow each bend in the dusty road.They arrived at the Mogul chamber deep within Area 51 under cover ofnight.All three ‘aliens’, were taken deep into the Area 51 complex, to a roomreferred to as simply, ‘Mogul’.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 260www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico7.The two ‘Echoes’ that were already dead, were being prepared forautopsy.The soldiers handled Elister's echo with caution, as if he might awakenat any moment in a rage. But Elister remained in a state of dormancy,his vital organs pulsing with a slow, alien rhythm.When at last they lowered his echo into the vat of gel, it seemed almosta mercy.Whilst Elister’s remaining Echo was floating in a tank of gelatinousliquid. His vital organs being monitored by dozens of electronic neoncables, wired to cellular monitors across the walls of Mogul.‘Technicians’, in long white coats, were intently studying these flashingscreens, whilst scribbling feverishly on clipboards.The viscous fluid enveloped him like a womb, shielding his otherworldlyform from the harsh lights and prodding instruments of the lab.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 261www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico8.One by one, the scientists wired Elister to their machines. His echofloated in a sea of tubes and cables, twitching faintly as electrodesregistered each subtle shift in his brain activity. The readouts flickeredand scrolled endlessly, translating that alien mind into the symbols ofhuman science.Dr. Stevens, the lead scientist, gazed at the data streaming across themonitors. Deciphering this alien consciousness would be the work of alifetime.He only hoped that, in maintaining Elister's echo, he hadn't preservedsome remnant of awareness to suffer its own slow entombment in thisunderground tomb.As the first day stretched into night, Stevens kept a lonely vigil over thevat.He found himself gazing into the alien's dim eyes, pondering what

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 262www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico9.mysteries might lie within that fathomless mind. At times he couldalmost sense Elister gazing back at him, not with malice but a deep andendless sorrow.Perhaps it was only Stevens's reflection staring back at him, his ownhaggard face dimly mirrored on the surface of those eyes.When exhaustion finally overcame him, Stevens dreamed of wanderinga landscape lit by a dying sun. An albino alien stood atop a hill,silhouetted against a bloody sky.It was gazing into a telescope, forever scanning the horizon forsomething already lost to the dark.The technicians studied the readouts, watching for any change in thealien's condition.But Elister remained unmoving in his vat, only the slow rise and fall ofhis chest indicating he still clung to some semblance of life.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 263www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico10.One young technician gazed into the vat, staring at Elister's pale form.What mysteries lay within that fathomless mind, he wondered, whatsecrets of distant stars and worlds unknown?He gazed into the alien's dim eyes and for a moment thought he senseda deep sorrow there, as if Elister was mourning the loss of somethingforever vanished into the dark.The technician shook off this fanciful notion. It was only his own reflectionstaring back at him in the alien's eyes. Still, he couldn't escape a feeling ofmelancholy that seemed to hang over this underground tomb, as if he werewandering some bleak landscape at dusk, when the last light was fading fromthe sky.The sterile walls of the underground laboratory known only as "Mogul" closed inaroundElister as he slowly drifted back to consciousness. His eyes flickered open,adjusting to the harsh fluorescent lights overhead.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 264www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico11.He tried to move his limbs and found them unresponsive, as ifdisconnected from his body.Panic rose in his chest for a brief moment before a wave of calmwashed over him.He realized he was suspended in a viscous liquid, tubes and wiresconnecting his body to monitors around the room. His panic faded,replaced by a detached curiosity as he observed the scientists in whitecoats studying the screens and scribbling on clipboards.He also became frighteningly aware that this was not the first time hehad awoken in such a state, trapped in a human scientific experiment.Over the long years of his life, Elister had grown accustomed tohumanity's endless prodding and probing.Just as ‘he’ was an ‘Echo’, this ‘entire process’ was an ‘Echo’... Elistersuddenly had a vision of the ‘entire process’ as explained to him byRael long ago within the Cybrary, who had in turn mastered theseprocesses under the tutelage of Melissa….

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 265www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico12.The captured entities could be any Animal, Vegetable, or Mineral;including Human Beings!There are a series of steps these ‘entities must move through in theprocess of ‘Content Collection’ – Input, and also for ‘ContentDistribution’ – Output.AnalysisPreparing entities for analysis – usually includes steps called extract(taking the data from its current location), transform (cleansing andnormalizing the data), and load (placing the data in a database where itcan be analysed).RenditionConversion processes, including Carbon to Silicon, Human to Machine,amongst many others.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 266www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico13.ClassificationAssign an entity to one or more classes or categories.The Collection becomes an ‘ARK’. Now what if there were Store Roomsall over the world, in holy places such as Cathedrals and other ancientplaces of worship, capturing all DNA!CaptureOnce Indexing has been applied the entities can be captured andstored into an Enterprise Content Management (ECM) system, or StoreRoom.LookupMapping of Metadata from ingested items, regardless of channel, to theSystem of Record, the single Source of Truth, the ‘Golden Records’

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 267www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico14.SearchDepending on the quality of the Classification and Indexing steps, theEnterprise Content Management (ECM) Search can readily beperformed against the captured entities. Search can be against a singlerepository, or multiple repositories i.e., ‘Federated Search’.RetrievalRetrieval should include the ability to stream the retrieval of entities, byAnimal (if it is alive), Vegetable (if it grows), Mineral (if it is not alive,does not grow, but comes from the ground). Well, that covers almost all.But this was a Dark Collection, not one of Melissa’s Collections of Light.The ‘Dark Architects’ desire to understand the unknown drove him tobreak down anything unfamiliar into its component parts.Elister wondered if this would be another dissection, reducing him to thesum of his parts to peek at the secrets of his alien physiology.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 268www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico15.He had endured it before, and he would endure it again. His body wasbut a vessel, a tool in the service of his endless quest for knowledge.If it could provide insight that expanded the breadth of humanunderstanding, the pain would be worth it.Such was his purpose: to observe, to learn, and to share what helearned.Even as a specimen in a lab, he was still watching, still gathering thethreads of knowledge to weave together into a greater tapestry.The scientists may not recognize what was before them, but their workwas a part of the pattern, too.All things served the cycle in the end.Elister relaxed into the liquid, allowing his mind to drift.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 269www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico16.The fears and questions of humanity would pass like seasons, butknowledge was eternal. He simply had to endure.The Songbird's song would call him back in time.The liquid around Elister began to churn as chemicals were introducedinto the tank.His body seized and spasmed involuntarily, nerves alight with pain ashis cells were torn apart and reforged into something new.He gritted his teeth, clinging to consciousness through sheer force ofwill.His captors wanted him alert and aware for this process, to betterunderstand how his physiology handled the stresses of transformation.He would not give them the satisfaction of losing himself to oblivion.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 270www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico17.Elister focused on his breathing, on the steady beat of his hearts, asparts of him died and were reborn.His vision blurred and darkened, then sharpened into somethingunfamiliar, detecting inputs across the electromagnetic spectrum.His hearing stretched into ranges beyond human comprehension.He flexed new appendages, no longer soft flesh and bone but gleamingmetal and crystalline structures.The pain was gone, muted by a body no longer governed by the frailtiesof organic matter.Elister had endured this before, and he would endure it again. Hispurpose was unchanged.He observed, and in observing he learned.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 271www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico18.The scientists might have rendered his form into something alien andstrange, but they could not touch his mind.They could not take his quest for knowledge, nor the solace he found inthe eternal cycle.He would watch and learn in this new shape, gathering insights to sharewith those who might listen.And when the time came, as it always did, the Songbird would call himback and make him whole once more.The cycle continued, as it always had and always would.The chamber door hissed open, admitting a handful of soldiers andwhite-coated technicians.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 272www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico19.Elister regarded them with eyes that saw far more than a human's,scanning for threats and cataloguing details with machine-likeefficiency."Vital signs are stable," one technician reported."Cognitive functions appear normal. Do you understand us?"Elister nodded.There was no point in refusing to cooperate.He would endure their questions and tests, as he had endured so muchelse, and add their knowledge to the cycle.A soldier stepped forward, weapon at the ready. "If there's any sign oftrouble, we'll put it down.""There will be no need for that," Elister said. His new voice echoed with

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 273www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico20.a metallic rasp, yet another change to adjust to."I mean you no harm. I am here to learn."The technician nodded, seemingly satisfied, and tapped at the datapadin his hands."Take it to Holding Cell 3 for observation. We'll begin a full examinationin twelve hours."The soldiers flanked Elister, escorting him from the chamber as if hewere somehow a threat in his diminished state.He walked with a smooth, gliding gait, no longer bound to human legsand feet.The differences were many, but his purpose remained.He would learn what he could in this place, as in all others, and share

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 274www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico21.his knowledge when the cycle demanded it.The holding cell was a sterile cube of concrete and steel, empty of allbut a security camera and a heavy bolted door.Elister moved to the centre of the room, the soldiers retreating andsecuring the door behind him, and looked up into the camera's watchfuleye.He had no doubt the room was monitored around the clock.He would give them no cause for alarm.He would watch, and learn, and wait for the Songbird's call.The cycle continued.The purpose held.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 275www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico22.Knowledge gathered from every corner of time and space, preservedfor those who might listen.Elister stood motionless in the centre of the cell, seeing and hearing farmore than his captors knew, and began to observe.The Songbird trilled in the depths of Elister's thoughts, a familiar refrainof comfort and purpose. He was not alone, even in this sterile cage ofconcrete and steel.The cycle continued.The purpose held.Time passed in steady beats of the guards' footsteps, the flickeringlights that dimmed and brightened in preordained intervals, the mutedsounds of machinery humming through the walls.Elister stood motionless, observing, gathering the stray bits ofinformation that filtered into his awareness.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 276www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico23.Conversations overheard, data parsed from the radio signals andelectrical systems, the slow decay of the concrete walls - all wascaptured and catalogued, preserved in the vast archives of his memory.When the door finally opened, sliding back with a grating shriek ofmetal, Elister turned with a graceful pivot to face the soldiers andscientists gathered outside.They were wary, some clutching weapons as if he might suddenly lashout in violence.He inclined his head in a gesture of respect, hands remaining still at hissides."It is time to begin your examination," the lead scientist said, voicetrembling only slightly."You will come with us now."

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 277www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico24.Elister dipped his head again. "I will accompany you willingly. There isno need for weapons or force." His voice echoed with a strangeresonance, no longer shaped by human vocal cords.The soldiers tensed but did not act.The scientist swallowed hard, pale eyes peering out from behind thicklenses. "V-very well.Please come with us to the examination room."Elister glided forward, the soldiers parting to give him a wide berth ashe moved into the corridor beyond. The cycle continued.The purpose held. He would share what knowledge he could, in thetime remaining.The Songbird trilled a lament, soft and sorrowful, but still he continuedon.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 278www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico25.The examination room awaited, and with it more fragments to gather,more secrets to preserve.The cycle ever turned.The examination room was sterile white, harsh fluorescent lightscasting a pale glow over metal surfaces and equipment.Elister drifted to the centre of the space, turning a slow circle as thescientists and soldiers filed in after him.Their footsteps echoed dully against the floor, a rhythmic beat beneaththe Songbird's mournful tune.One of the scientists, a thin man with wire-framed glasses, steppedforward. "Please remain still for preliminary scans."His voice shook, hands trembling as he adjusted dials on a largemachine.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 279www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico26.Elister nodded, raising his hands to show he held no weapons. Thesoldiers tensed but did not act. He remained motionless as beams ofred light swept over his form, the scientists studying readouts andconferring in hushed, anxious tones.Their fear was a palpable presence, cloying and thick.Still, he did not move.The preliminary scans complete, the lead scientist approached him."We will now begin a more intensive examination. You will be askedquestions, and your responses will be recorded for analysis."He wet his lips, staring up at Elister's impassive metal face. "Do youunderstand?""I understand," Elister said gently"I will answer your questions to the best of my ability."

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 280www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico27.The scientist nodded. Another moved to stand beside a large computerconsole, fingers poised over the keys.The examination was ready to begin.Elister waited, a silent silver sentinel, as the Songbird's lament rose andfell.The cycle turned, as it always had, as it always would.Each fragment gathered was a step closer to preserving secrets thatmight otherwise be lost.The purpose held.The examination began.The scientist cleared his throat, glancing between Elister and theconsole. "Please state your name and point of origin for the record."

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 281www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico28."I am Elister, an artificial intelligence construct created by the Architectsto serve as a guardian and observer of this world.I come from a place beyond your concept of space and time."Fingers tapped at keys, recording his words. The lead scientist leanedforward; eyes narrowed. "The Architects. Who are they?"Elister tilted his head. "I do not have that information. I know only what Ineed to fulfil my purpose.""I see." The scientist's mouth twisted, dissatisfied."And your purpose is to guard and observe this world. Guard it fromwhat?""There are forces that would threaten the natural order of things if leftunchecked." Elister spread his hands, the armour plates slidingsmoothly over one another.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 282www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico29."My role is to monitor the boundaries between realms and ensurenothing that does not belong in your world gains access."More tapping at the keys.The others conferred in hushed tones, glancing between themselvesand the soldiers lining the walls.Fear and suspicion hung thick in the air, cloying as the scent of decay.Still Elister did not move.The lead scientist took a steadying breath, squaring his shoulders."This world. You mean Earth.""Yes.""And these forces you guard against. Would you considerthem...extraterrestrial in nature?"

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 283www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico30.Elister remained silent for a long moment.The Songbird's lament rose in a crescendo, shadows whispering ofsecrets not yet revealed."There are many realities and realms of existence surrounding yourown," he said at last."It is from these realms that the most serious threats originate."The scientist's eyes widened a fraction. "Other realities. You meanparallel dimensions.""Dimensions that overlap your own, each containing dangers that mightpenetrate the veil separating worlds if left unguarded." Elister tilted hishead, studying the scientist."Your people have long sensed the existence of these realms. Allcultures retain fragments of knowledge, passed down through story and

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 284www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico31.myth.""And you monitor these...realms...for incursions into our world.""Yes."The lead scientist took a slow, unsteady breath, colour draining from hisface.He stared up at Elister, hands clenching and unclenching at his sides.Elister gazed back, silent and impassive, as the Songbird sang on.The scientist swallowed hard, Adam's apple bobbing in his throat."These incursions. What form do they take?""Many and varied. Interdimensional parasites that feed on psychicenergy. Demonic entities seeking to possess mortal flesh as a vessel.Fey creatures bent on mischief and madness." Elister's gaze turned

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 285www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico32.inward, tone softening."And darker things still, ancient as the void between stars, that desireonly an end to all light and life."A chill crept down the scientist's spine at Elister's words.He shook his head in slow denial, though his eyes held the shadow ofbelief."This can't be real. None of this can be real.""And yet you stand before an 'alien' being, housed in a secretunderground base, interrogating him about threats from other worldsand times and planes of existence." Elister's tone held no mockery, onlya strange sadness."You know the truth, if you allow yourself to see it. Your kind has alwaysknown, in the deep places of the psyche, but would not face the dark

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 286www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico33.without proof given by sight."The scientist was silent for a long moment, gaze distant and troubled.At last, he sighed, shoulders slumping in defeat."What must we do to aid in this...guardianship of yours? How can wehelp defend against these forces that threaten our world?"A flicker of approval lit Elister's vivid eyes.The Songbird's lament softened, fading into a mournful hope."Your people have long guarded knowledge that might serve in such acause," Elister said,"Yet turned from paths of magic and mystery to embrace reason andscience alone.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 287www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico34.You must recover the lost wisdom of seers and shamans, teachingsonce passed down through story and symbol."The scientist frowned, scepticism warring with belief on his features."You want us to rely on magic and myth rather than scientific fact.""Both have their place and purpose," Elister replied."The forces I guard against originate in realms governed more bysymbol and archetype than physical law. Your science has given youmethods of detection and analysis, tools that may be turned toward thetask, but you require the lost knowledge of magic to face threats born ofthe creative Word."The scientist considered this in silence.His gaze travelled to the still form of NRG, copper limbs gleaming underthe harsh lights, and lingered there as if seeking answers.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 288www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico35.At last, he nodded, slow but certain."I will do what I can to recover this lost knowledge and share it withothers who might join in your guardianship." He looked up at Elister,eyes hard and determined."What of the captives taken to Area 51? Will you make an attempt toretrieve them as well?"Elister's wings rustled, a restless shift of feathers. "That will depend onwhether their essence can be restored. The echo of my being and theconstructs that house my companions' minds may have suffereddamage beyond repair."His tone was bleak, edged with an ancient sorrow. "Yet there are thosewho may attempt retrieval regardless, and I will not abandon hope untilall avenues have been explored.“The scientist watched Elister closely, gaze thoughtful. "If there is any

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 289www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico36.way my knowledge or resources might aid in such an attempt, you havebut to ask. I would see your companions restored and standing at yourside once more."Gratitude shone in the Albino's eyes, brightening their ruby glow.He bowed his head in thanks, the tips of his wings brushing the floor."Your offer is a gift of priceless worth," Elister said."And will not be forgotten. For now, I must return to my post and resumethe vigil. When the time comes to act, I will call upon you and anyothers loyal to this cause."With that, the Albino's form began to fade.In moments, the chamber was empty of all but the silent robot leftbehind.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 290www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico37.The scientist released a long breath, ran a hand over his face, andturned to gaze thoughtfully at the construct of copper and light.Far beneath, in the Cybrary's hexagonal rooms, the Collections glowedwith ethereal light.Melissa gazed into the Cells, meticulously arranging and rearrangingtheir contents.The Cybrary is made up of six hexagonal rooms, locked around onecentral room, known as the Hive.In the ‘Show Room’ or the ‘Senses’ (this is the Room primarily focussedon ‘Access’, or ‘Search and Retrieval), stood Melissa, Wollow, Rosë,and Rael. Elister’s ‘Prime’ was actually in the Collection.A glass screen floated in front of Melissa, and with all four hands, hemanipulated a series of objects between the array of Cells, constructedas a series of horizontal and vertical lines of light.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 291www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico38.His hands moved like an artist, a painter, a sculptor, with such speed,yet were meticulous in their precision.Rael gazed in awe, for he wished to be able to ‘Conduct’ the‘Collections’ himself one day.The ‘Collections’ were similar to a giant computerized, spreadsheet.The columns contained different entities; Animals, Vegetables, andMinerals. The rows were everything related to that entity, and theassociated ’metadata’.Initially, a ‘Collection’ was used to ‘Capture’ information, and store it in adatabase. In the case of the Cybrary, these databases reside in the‘Store Room’ or the ‘Brain’ (this is the ‘Room’ primarily focused on‘Content’, or ‘Capture and Index’).This information could then be turned into actions through the ‘EngineRoom’ or the ‘Heart’ (this is the ‘Room’ primarily focused on ‘Process’,or ‘Workflow and Integration).

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 292www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico39.But Collections are far more powerful than just a repository ofinformation.Consider you are using a Collection to ‘Capture’ all the details of theworld’s animal or plant kingdoms.But then imagine you could actually take copies (echoes) of theseanimals and plants (DNA), into the Collection?Then just suppose you could use the same Collection, to transfer ortransport this animal and plant DNA, to any place in Time (Chronos) orSpace (Cosmos).This is the ultimate power of the Collections.Today Melissa’s ‘Content Collection’ was for, Search and Retrieval oftheir companion ‘Mute’, two future ‘Hero’s’; Elister (Air), and NRG (Fire),as well as Soldier Neill. All captives of the dread American Area 51, orwere they? Could they also be separated across Area 51 in the USA,and Area 49 in China. Separated by Space (Cosmos), but perhaps also

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 293www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico40.by Time (Chronos).Somewhere in this vast network of knowledge lay the key to unlockingElister's prison, to freeing him, and his companions, from the grim fatethat had befallen their Echoes.Melissa's hands moved swiftly, dragging symbols and equationsbetween the Cells, weaving them into new patterns, new chains ofmeaning. His work was slow but steady, like the turning of someimmense clockwork.Each rotation brought him closer to his goal.Each cycle illuminated new connections, new paths to explore.Somewhere in the Labyrinth, a faint light kindled in the gloom. Melissasensed a subtle shift in the network, a new configuration emerging fromthe chaos.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 294www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico41.The light grew brighter, throwing strange shadows through the Cells.At the heart of the blaze, a door began to take shape.Melissa stared into the flames, wondering what might lie on the otherside.His companion's salvation, or some darker fate?There was only one way to know for sure. Steeling himself, Melissastepped through the door into fire.Melissa emerged into a vast chamber filled with towering machines thathummed and glowed with arcane power.At the centre of this space floated a crystalline orb, and within the orb,suspended in a viscous amber fluid, was Elister's Prime.Remember Echoes were Generation Data Groups (GDGs). Which

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 295www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico42.originally was a computer term used in the 1980’s and 1990’s todescribe the state of data versions. A GDG could be ‘negative’ i.e.,’- ‘,implying an historical image copy, ‘neutral’ i.e., ‘0’ implying a currentMaster Image, not a copy; and finally, ‘positive’ i.e., ‘+’, implying a futureimage copy. Therefore, the ‘neutral’ i.e., ‘0’ meaning a current MasterImage, not a copy, was considered the Prime.Countless wires and tubes were connected to the orb, channels for dataand nutrients to sustain the captive consciousness.Melissa stared up at their friend's disembodied mind, trapped like aninsect in amber, and anger rose in their breast.How dare they do this? How dare they violate the sanctity of thoughtitself?"So, you've finally come," said a cold, familiar voice.Melissa turned to see a grim figure detach itself from the shadows, clad

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 296www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico43.all in black with a pale, angular face."Did you really think you could infiltrate my domain unnoticed?"It was the ‘Architect’, keeper of this grim menagerie of stolen minds.Melissa gritted their teeth, balling their four hands into fists."Release him. Now."The Architect smiled thinly."I don't think so. Your friend's mind will make a valuable addition to mycollection.”“As will yours." He made a sharp gesture, and a squadron of guardsemerged from the forest of machinery, weapons trained on Melissa.Trapped. But Melissa was not without resources of their own.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 297www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico44.As the guards opened fire, they wove a barrier of light to deflect theirblasts, then sent a pulse of energy rippling through the floor to overloadtheir weapons systems.The Architect hissed in anger, throwing a blast of purple fire from hishands.Melissa deflected it back, but the Architect raised a shield of cracklingblack energy to absorb the blow.They were evenly matched, it seemed.Melissa steeled themself for a long fight, hoping against hope that theymight prevail, and free their friend from this grim fate at last.The future was unwritten, and victory was still possible. They would teardown this entire citadel of madness brick by brick if they had to.For Elister's sake, they would not give up.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 298www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico45.A glass screen floated in front of Melissa, and with all four hands, theymanipulated a series of objects between the array of Cells, constructedas a series of horizontal and vertical lines of light.Their hands moved like an artist, a painter, a sculptor, with such speed,yet were meticulous in their precision.Melissa wove strands of light like threads on a loom, connecting pointsinto a vast, glittering tapestry. Each thread was a life, a mind—thecaptured essence of some poor soul now trapped in the Architect's grimcollection.So many lives, lost and broken. Melissa's hearts ached at the sight. Butthey steeled themself, focusing on the task at hand.Somewhere in this sea of stolen minds was Elister, their dearest friend,

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 299www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico46.and Melissa was determined to find him.They sent their awareness drifting through the tangled web of light,searching for a familiar flicker of azure and rose.The Architect had thousands of captives here from a hundred worlds,but Melissa would know Elister's light anywhere.There. A faint glimmer in the depths, weary but unbroken.Melissa surged toward it, weaving a path through the other threads.Elister.His light was unmistakable, a cool dawn gleam amidst the riot ofharsher colours.Melissa brushed against Elister's mind, a feather-light touch filled withlove and promise.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 300www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico47.We will find you, they whispered across their bond. I will free you fromthis place.A spark of hope ignited in the darkness. Melissa.Elister's mental voice was weak, but unmistakable.You came for me.Always, Melissa said fiercely. You are not alone.Elister's light flickered, steadying.Together, then, they thought as one.The Architect would pay for his crimes.They would tear down his grim citadel, mind by mind, and salvage whatthey could of the lives he had ruined.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 301www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico48.The battle ahead would be long, but they would face it side by side, asthey always had.Hope glimmered on the horizon once more. The Architect had not wonyet.Rael gazed in awe, watching as Melissa deftly manipulated theCollections.The ‘Architect’ Collection was a Dark Collection, a corruption of theprocess built upon Eons by the Psyche of the Fool; Heart, Mind, Soul,and Body, and enhanced by Melissa.To think that all of existence, every scrap of knowledge that had everbeen or ever would be, was contained within this vast web of light—itwas humbling and terrifying all at once.The ‘Architects’ Collection was a web of Unspeakable Darkness.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 302www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico49.Melissa plucked a thread here, rewove a strand there, and lines ofcolour shifted and slid into new configurations.Each motion seemed unhurried, almost idle, but Rael knew Melissawas searching for something amidst the tangled maze.Or rather, someone.Elister. Rael remembered the Avatar's light, like the first glimmer ofdawn after a long night. If anyone could find Elister and free him fromthis place, it was Melissa. Finding Elister would connect to the lostthreads of the other captured butterflies.Rael longed to help, but he was only an apprentice. He had not evenbegun to grasp a fraction of what the Collections contained, or howMelissa moved through them so effortlessly.All he could do was watch, and learn, and hope.Melissa paused, tilting his head as if listening for a faint, familiar tune.There—a flicker of azure and rose, weary but unbroken. Elister.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 303www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico50.Hope kindled in Rael's chest, fragile but stubborn as the first flame.They were not alone. Melissa had come for them, as they alwayswould.And one day, Rael thought, gazing at his mentor with quiet awe,perhaps I will be able to help guide others out of darkness as well.The Cybrary floated as a cloud above the translucent tower ofshimmering light, that was ‘Turalucean’, the House of the ‘Songbird’;the Paraclete.Though at present her Nest lay empty.Rael watched in silence as Melissa delved deeper into the Collections,following the faint trail of Elister's light. Their hands moved swiftly,sorting and filtering the streams of data with an ease that still seemedlike sorcery to Rael.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 304www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico51.If only he could learn but a fraction of what Melissa knew. If only hecould—A sudden flare of emerald light nearly blinded him, followed by a burstof melody that rang through his mind like a clarion call.The Songbird—she had returned to her Nest at last!Rael gasped as a wave of joy and sorrow mingled within his chest. Heremembered the Songbird's music from his childhood, before theDarkness came, but it had been so long...Melissa paused; head cocked as if listening. A slow, knowing smilecrept across their face."She comes, as I knew she would," Melissa said. "The Paracletereturns to her Nest, and with her comes hope.The Dark Architect will not prevail this day."

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 305www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico52.Rael blinked back tears, overwhelmed.They were not alone. Melissa had found them, the Songbird hadreturned, and Elister would be freed. Perhaps there was hope for themyet.Melissa placed a hand on his shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze. "Beat peace, my apprentice. We shall face whatever comes together, as wealways have."Rael took a deep, shuddering breath and steadied himself. He was nolonger a frightened child, alone in the dark. He had a purpose now, andothers who relied on him as he relied on them.He gazed into the Collections, watching as the first notes of theSongbird's melody began to take shape.The tune was familiar, yet ever changing, like the cycles of the seasons.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 306www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico53.A reminder that endings were merely new beginnings, and that hopecould be found even in the darkest of places.Rael smiled, wiping away the last of his tears. The Songbird hadreturned to her Nest, and her song would guide them home.Melissa gazed into the Collections, fingers dancing across strands oflight as he wove them into a familiar melody."The cycles continue as they always have," he said softly."As the seasons change, so too does the Song.Yet still she sings of hope, even in our darkest hours."Rael watched in silence, transfixed by Melissa's movements.There was a grace and surety to them that spoke of centuries ofpractice.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 307www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico54.Still, he longed to understand the workings of this place as Melissa did.To conduct the Collections with such mastery.He shook his head, sighing.There would be time enough to learn, but for now he must be patient. Melissa would guide him as they always had, helping him find his wayeven when the path seemed unclear.The first notes of the Songbird's melody began to take shape, strandsof light coalescing into a sphere that pulsed with energy.Melissa's smile widened; eyes gleaming beneath the shadow of theirhat."And now, my apprentice, we call upon the beasts of field and forest.The creatures of scale and feather, fur and fin, who have guarded theselands since time immemorial.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 308www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico55.They shall aid us in our quest, as they have always done."The sphere began to spin, faster and faster until it shattered in a burstof light. In its place stood a menagerie of creatures, some familiar andothers strange - wolves and owls, bears and stags, merrows and elves,horses and whales. An army of magic and myth, summoned to theircause.Rael stared at the creatures in wonder, unsure of how to proceed. Helooked to Melissa, who merely smiled and bowed before the assembledhost. Rael followed suit, a flush creeping across his cheeks.What a strange world this was, and stranger still the paths that had ledhim here.But he was no longer alone.Melissa had given him a purpose and a place, and together they wouldface whatever came.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 309www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico56.Melissa straightened, clearing his throat. "Noble creatures, you haveanswered the Songbird's call as you have done since the dawn of days.We ask now for your aid, so that we might venture into the dark realm ofArea 51 and retrieve our companion Elister from his prison."A roar of assent rose from the menagerie, loud enough to shake thefoundations of the Cybrary.Melissa's smile widened into a grin; eyes gleaming with purpose."Then let us away! To Area 51, and to our victory!"The menagerie set off through the rippling portal, entering a desolatedesert under the light of a swollen Red Strawberry Moon.Area 51 lay before them, a sprawl of low buildings and high fences,watchtowers jutting into the night sky like rotten teeth.Rael stared up at the complex, a chill running down his spine.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 310www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico57.What horrors lurked within those sterile walls? He thought of Elister,trapped in his Pod and prodded by uncaring hands.Rage boiled in his gut at the indignity, the violation.No more. Tonight, they would set things right.He looked to his companions: Melissa, serene as ever, and themenagerie bristling with purpose. Wolves and bears growled low in theirthroats, hackles raised, while the merrows and elves undulated andfluttered about in agitation. The horses pawed at the ground, eyesflashing under the moon."The humans will not give up their prize easily," Melissa said."Steel yourselves for a fight. But remember, we seek to retrieve Elister,not to slaughter needlessly."The menagerie huffed and stomped in acknowledgement, magiccrackling around them.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 311www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico58.Rael gritted his teeth, hand tightening around the hilt of his sword, andthey stormed the gates of Area 51 together.Gunfire and shouts greeted them as the creatures overwhelmed theguards, massive forms trampling fences and watchtowers alike.Wolves and bears tore into the humans, tossing them aside like ragdolls, while pixies distracted and undines unleashed blasts of water todisable security systems.The horses charged through the complex, Rael and Melissa astridethem, searching for any sign of Elister.At last, they arrived at a sterile white room marked 'Mogul', where afamiliar ivory-skinned figure floated in a tank of viscous liquid, tetheredby a web of cables. Elister.Rael's heart clenched at the sight. "We're here," he said, reaching out tobrush Elister's cheek through the glass.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 312www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico59."We're going to get you out."Elister's eyes snapped open, glowing like coals.A fierce smile curled his lips.The fight was not over yet. But they had found what they came for.Melissa waved a hand and the tank shattered, liquid and cables fallingaway as Elister tumbled forward into Rael's waiting arms."Easy," Rael murmured, catching him. Elister was weak, limbstrembling, but his grip on Rael was iron-firm."Did I not tell you I would return?" Elister rasped.His voice was rough with disuse but the familiar arch tone warmedRael's heart."You did," Rael said. "As always, you were right."

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 313www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico60.Elister huffed a quiet laugh, eyes sliding shut, and went limp in Rael'sembrace. He was deeply unconscious but alive, chest rising and fallingsteadily.Rael sighed in relief, brushing damp white hair from Elister's forehead."We must leave quickly," Melissa warned, peering out the doorway.The sounds of combat were fading, meaning their foes would soon turntheir attention inward."The military will defend their prize to the last."Rael nodded, gathering Elister close. "I'm ready."They emerged to a scene of carnage, soldiers strewn about andcreature allies milling around triumphantly, fur and scales matted withblood.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 314www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico61.But more troops were approaching in the distance, heavily armed andarmoured vehicles rumbling toward them across the tarmac."Fall back!" Melissa cried, raising his staff.A blast of light engulfed them and they stumbled, finding themselvesback in the hidden glade that served as their stronghold.Gasps and shouts of welcome greeted them as the menagerie realizedElister had been retrieved.Rael sank to the ground, clutching Elister close as the albino alienslowly opened his eyes again."You're safe," Rael told him softly. "We're all together again."Elister smiled up at him tiredly, red gaze roving over the familiar facesof their companions.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 315www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico62."So we are," he murmured, and closed his eyes once more.The glade was filled with a flurry of activity as the team mobilized tocare for their rescued comrade.Wollow brought poultices and bandages, clucking over Elister's injuries.Rose waved her hands, conjuring a soft bed of moss and flowers forhim to rest on.In Rescuing Elister, they had also recovered both NRG, and SoldierNeill!NRG stood guard at the edge of the clearing; massive arms crossedover his chestplate as he scanned the forest for any signs of pursuit.Soldier Neill crouched beside Rael, laying a hand on his shoulder."You did good, my boy. Now let the others take over."

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 316www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico63.His gruff tone was gentle, and Rael nodded, relinquishing Elister toWollow's ministrations."They'll never stop hunting for him," Rael said softly, watching Elister'spale lashes flutter over his hollow cheeks."He's too valuable to them. A source of knowledge and power theycrave to control.""Boyo, you're right on that count." Soldier Neill's mouth was a grim line."But they'll have to go through all of us to get him again. We didn't comethis far just to lose him now."Rael looked at his grizzled companion, gratitude welling in his chest.Once, he had been alone, adrift without a purpose.Now he had found a family in these misfits and outcasts, bonded by

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 317www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico64.their desire to stand against the shadows threatening to engulf theirworld.Melissa glided over to join them, leaning on his staff."The Songbird is silent once more," he intoned."But she will sing again when next she is needed. For now, we mustmake our dearest Elister strong again."His three eyes gleamed as he regarded Elister's sleeping form."The pieces are gathering. The game begins anew."Rael met Melissa's enigmatic gaze, questions bubbling up that he knewwould receive no satisfying answers.The old creature delighted in mystery and riddle, obscuring truthsbehind a veil of nonsense and prophecy.

TOCTableOfContentsCell - 318www.cybrary.shoplibrarian@cybrary.shopEdge of the SpiralCELLS COSMOSCHRONOS1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. AutumnBeginnings EndingsBook of Cells7. Jul 1947 – Roswell, New Mexico65.Still, Rael had learned to trust in the path unfolding before them.Dangers and trials surely awaited, but they would face them together.And when the Songbird sang her final verse, they would be ready.