The Farpool (78 page)

KE’TEEOH: The normal gatherings of the
em’kel to air grievances, discuss plans, assign duties, etc. Often
loud and boisterous, even when conducted in one of the many formal
argumentative disciplines (see SHKEKTOO).

KETUVISHTEK: The ritual of the globe
circling, a rite of passage that confirms Seomish midlings as
adults. It occurs on or near the
20
^th
mah birthday. The midling
must circumnavigate the world, collecting rock and plant specimens
as proof and return safely before he considered fully mature enough
to form his own em’kel.

KIP’T: A small, electrically powered sled,
often used for transport within the kel and occasionally, for
long-distance travel. Usually enclosed, with minimal comforts.

KONG’PELU: A rigorous game, native to
Eep’kos, but popular throughout Seome. Often played by teams of
twenty or more, it involves the use of long blunt poles to score
and defend. The object is to snap a weighted sack over the head of
as many opponents as possible. Used by the Eep’kostic as a form of
combat training.

MAH: The basic unit of time on Seome, a
year. It lasts from the beginning of one mah’jeet migration cycle
to the beginning of the next. Comparable to about 18 Terran
months.

MEKLI: One of the Shookian priestesses,
usually quartered at the Pillars of Shooki. Although the Pillars
are in Ponkti territory, the Mekli owe their allegiance to no kel.
Their stations are hereditary and so they are considered to be a
separate, holy family, although not large enough to be termed a
kel. The Mekli claim to be descended from the Shkulee, an extinct
species of fish that legend says Shooki created to provide the
ancient Seomish with omens and portents of what was to come. The
skin of the shkulee was often marked in bright, colorful spiral
patterns, which were studied for clues to the future.

MEKTOO: Usually the eldest and most sexually
productive female of the largest em’kel. The Mektoo is the Kel’em’s
voice before the Metah and is often granted considerable
decision-making authority in day-to-day matters. Much of her work
consists of arbitrating em’kel disputes and arguments.

METAMAH: A thousand mah, an epoch.

METAH: The eldest female of the entire kel
and nominal head of the family. Her full title is Metashooklet (The
One Who Lives in God) and she is always the moral and spiritual
leader of the kel. Some Metahs involve themselves in kel politics
more than others. The Metah is considered to embody the essence of
the kel and her death is a time for great mourning.

OOTKEEOR: The deep-lying thermal,
sound-reflecting layer that channels messages around the world.
Repeating stations are strategically located to boost the signal as
it bounces along. Depending on conditions, sounds can travel
upwards of 50 kilometers unamplified in parts of Seome.

OOTSTEK: Also known as a repeater, the
ootstek form one of the most important of all em’kels. Their work
is lonely and demanding, requiring them to back up the automatic
functioning of the ootkeeor. Repeaters roam on station in the
boundary waters between the kels and, when the ootkeeor is not
working properly, it is their duty to listen for and repeat any and
all messages that come through. Repeaters are traditionally
possessed of magnificent voices as well as acute hearing.

OPUH’TE: A whirlpool, a vortex.

OT’LUM: Also called a scentbulb. The ot’lum
is a device that captures and holds any kind of scent for periods
that can extend into centuries. A small, plastic sphere, the ot’lum
carries coded olfactory information which can be used and re-used
many times before losing its potency. It is a primary means of
storing information as well as a major art form.

P’TEK: (also P’TCHOOT) The unknown, the
frontier, any sea that is unexplored or unmapped.

PAK’OH: A commodity agent or anyone who
organizes the production of a commodity for sale. The principal
work of the pak’oh is in contracting for work done by manufacturing
or service em’kels and seeing that the product or service is
distributed to where it is needed. Most Seomish industry is
organized along craft lines so extra-em’kel agents are needed to
bring production and consumption of goods together. Pak’oh also
organize themselves into em’kels and it is these groups that
function as rudimentary corporations.

PUL’KE: Death, the end, finality, a state or
condition of no water or that same feeling.

SCENTBULB: See OT’LUM.

SHAME-BOND: The act of binding any
individual to any other for the purpose of humiliating him.
Shame-bound have usually committed a serious breach of etiquette or
custom, thus injuring the dignity of a person or group of persons.
It is customary for the individual who has been injured to require
some humiliating task of his shame-bound, the theory being that by
suffering the contempt of his peers, the offender will learn the
value of proper manners and the importance of personal dignity.
Some kels frown on this practice.

SHOO’KEL: The desirable state of keeping
one’s inner fluids in balance so that any pulse of you is clean and
regular. Any other state is vulgar or obscene. This is the third
great moral principle that is important to the Seomish. A form of
personal honor and dignity. Control of excessive emotion is
necessary to efficient and accurate pulsing. Also used in a general
or universal sense to mean tranquility, peace, the natural order of
things, stability, etc.

SHKEKTOO: One of several argumentative
disciplines employed in em’kel gatherings or even in more formal
assemblies. Rhetoric is a highly respected art on Seome and
shkektoo is one of the higher and more respected forms of it.
Seomish employ these techniques of exchange for many reasons, among
them are a great love for words and talk and a desire to keep all
arguments and verbal confrontations within the bounds of propriety,
thus preserving dignity. In the case of shkektoo, the exchange
proceeds along a line of rhetorical questions and interrogative
suppositions, according to an ancient technique of particularizing
from universal first principles.

SHOOKI: The Great Father, God, the Creator
of the Ocean. Also an archaic expression for clear, calm water.
Shoo’ke means literally “The Loving One.”

SH’PONT: A truncated, flat-topped seamount
(guyot) often used by kels as extra storage or living space, as
well as for observation, communication, and kip’t handling. In
ancient times, most kels lived underground in caves and tunnels
beneath the sh’pont and as they expanded in size, gradually moved
out into the open sea and built larger, free-standing cities.
However, ancestral ties to the sh’pont are still strong and the
seamounts are almost always the center of life for most kels.

TEKMA: A special envoy, hired for the
purpose of conveying a message of great importance. Tekma are one
of the most elite of all em’kels, and one of the most demanding.
The couriers must be of the utmost integrity and character, as they
are usually entrusted with dispatches too critical to be sent by
ootkeeor. The word comes from tekmetah, meaning “Arm of the
Metah.”

TEKN’EEN: The memory drug, given most often
to the Metah, for the purpose of improving and enhancing her recall
of facts. Extracted from the blood of the k’orpuh.

THOUGHT-BOND: The act of mentally binding
two minds so that thought may be shared. Attitudes about this vary
among the kels.

T’ING: A valuable, coral-like material that
is native to the waters of Sk’ort. Useful as an electrical material
and as decorative ornamentation.

TONKRO: An 8-player Omtorish game that
involves the assembly of a complicated, open-frame pyramid
structure in as short a time as possible.

T’SHOO: The feel of water flowing across
one’s skin; a kind of ecstasy.

TUK: The Ponkti martial dance believed to
have originated in the days before spoken language, as a means of
telling stories and teaching children. Over the ages, it has become
stylized and ritualized into both an art and a combat discipline,
as well as a sport. It consists of an exceedingly complex series of
body movements, including kicks, tail whips and punches, that must
be performed from memory in exactly the right sequence, with grace
and style, in order to win.

TU’LE: The practice (from the
word
metor’tule
) of doing
favors and giving extravagant gifts to friends and guests.
Discretion, taste and expense are the canons of judgment in these
ritual gestures of affection and indulgence. The root word means
“frenzied waters.”

VIK’T: A verb form meaning “to go against
the current.”

VISH: A verb form meaning “to go with the
current.”

VISHTU: One of the oldest customs of the
Seomish, the vishtu or companionship roam, is very much in the
traditions of Ke’shoo and typically involves two people although
there is no set number. Roams can last anywhere from a few minutes
to a few days, even longer, with the average being a few hours.
Debate and talk is usually discouraged during the roam in order to
let the physical beauty of the landscape work its magic. Often a
prelude to some intense, emotionally draining activity, such as
sexual intercourse, the fine points and protocol of a roam are
learned by Seomish at an early age.

Key Words Denoting Important Water
Conditions

EEKOOT’ORKELTE: Water of minimum pressure
for life

EET’ORKELTE: Water with salt content too low
for comfort or safety

LITOR’KEL: Calm water, usually temperate

MEETOR’KEL: Water of rough, mixing currents,
but good visibility

M’TKELTE: Rough, mixing water with poor
visibility

MUH’PULTE: Water infested with mah’jeet.
Also called M’JEET.

OM’ORKEL: Water of moderate turbidity,
otherwise calm

ONK’KELTE: Water with salt content too high
for comfort or safety

P’OMORTE: Water of high turbidity

P’RHUMORKEL: Water of moderate
turbulence

ROT’OOT’ORKELTE: Water under extremely high
pressure

SHOO’KEL: Clear, calm water (archaic
form)

SKOR’KELTE: Fiery hot but calm water

TCHOR’KELTE: Ice cold, numbing but calm
water

VISHM’TEL: Smoothly flowing, fast
current

About the Author

Philip Bosshardt is a native of Atlanta,
Georgia. He works for a large company that makes products everyone
uses…just check out the drinks aisle at your grocery store. He’s
been happily married for 25 years. He’s also a Georgia Tech
graduate in Industrial Engineering. He loves water sports in any
form and swims 3-4 miles a week in anything resembling water. He
and his wife have no children. They do, however, have one terribly
spoiled Keeshond dog named Kelsey.

For technical and background details on
his series
Tales of the Quantum
Corps
, visit his blog at
http://qcorpstimes.blogspot.com
.
For details on other books in this series,
visit his website at
http://philbosshardt.wix.com/philip-bosshardt
or learn about other books by Philip Bosshardt by
visiting
www.smashwords.com
.

To get a peek at Philip Bosshardt’s
upcoming work, recent reviews, excerpts and general updates on the
writing life, visit his blog
The Word
Shed
at:
http://thewdshed.blogspot.com
.