Glossary

“Happy are those who do not follow the advice of the wicked or take the path that sinners tread or sit in the seat of scoffers,
but their delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law they meditate day and night.”
Psalm 1:1-2

Glossary of Terms:

Alvarez	A CFC patrol ship captained by Arabella Snow. This was Nicole’s first assignment in the Ranger Corps.
Amarise	Earth’s fifth colony planet. The Rodgers family and the Kamp family all come from Amarise.
Blue Belle	Mining ship captained by Mark Adams. The ship is owned by Nathan and Belle Smith. Peter and Nicole sign on to the crew after Peter resigns his commission.
Betsy Ann	A family run mining ship captained by Larry Stone (Peter Cook’s maternal grandfather). Peter was born on this ship.
Cinna	Egg-shaped fruit the size of a small melon but a lot softer, and it goes from a sand color to cinnamon-colored when ripe, which is where its name comes from. It has a juicy honey sweet meat that is golden in color. The meat also sparkles when the light touches it. The raw fruit is good for you. It is full of antioxidants and has a natural ingredient that increases memory and cognitive skills.
Cinna Trees	Cinna trees grow to a height of about thirty meters. They have a smooth trunk of a deep reddish-brown color. The leaves are shaped like a five-pointed star and the white blossoms give off a sweet honey fragrance. The trees take two years to reach maturity and start bearing fruit, but then they bear cinna year-round in a tropical climate.
Colonies	In order of establishment: Jahrl, Lakosi, Haven, Nodar, Amarise, Lyan-Dal, Fladden, Odin, Kezarn, Balcarro Colony, Larson’s Colony, Hoffman Lode Colony, Opal Garrison, Ludac, Naderman Settlement, Liam Settlement, and Phoenix
Commonwealth of Federated Colonies (CFC)	The government uniting all worlds and colonies together. The capital is in Baldric City on Jahrl.
Data Pad	Hand-held computer. There are different versions of the data pad, for instance there is one for personal use, schools usually assign one to each student, and each member of a ship’s crew is also assigned one for work. There are also specialized data pads for engineering, star maps, medical, etc.
The Farm	A school that Ganen set up to teach his younger gang members. With every ship the Gang captures, the children are taken to the Farm where they’re brainwashed to be loyal to Ganen. The students that graduate from the farm become loyal members of the Ganen Gang. After Ganen’s arrest, CFC takes control of the Farm and turns it into a proper school and establishes a new colony on the planet that is now called Phoenix.
Fond Marin Detention Facility	The Fond Marin Detention Facility is a prison on the sea floor. It’s 53 kilometers offshore from Baldric City and 4,408 meters down.
Freedom	Private Star Yacht that Dolan Kamp built and in which his kids rescued Nicole Champion.
Funnel ball	Funnel ball is played with three teams of three players each. The ball is ribbed for easy gripping and is eight inches in diameter. The funnel shaped goal is in the center of court. When the ball goes down the funnel, that team earns three points. The computer then shoots it out one of the three exit points at the bottom of the funnel at random within five to ten seconds. Players must bounce the ball off the walls and pass to other team members to move it around the court.
The Ganen Gang	Notorious gang of pirates led by Ganen. The Ganen Gang is known to steal ships and enslave their crews. The Gang manufactures and sells a dangerous drug, Glitterdust. They control five casino stations just outside of CFC space in which all kinds of illegal deals happen such as: slave trafficking, drugs, prostitution, weapons, and buying and selling of illegal items. The Gang also has a reputation for excessive brutality and murder; although, most of those rumors are false.
Glitterdust	Glitterdust is a mind-altering drug made from cinna, the fruit of the cinna trees. It’s known as Glitterdust because the gold-colored powder glitters in the light. It significantly increases mental acuity, focus, and physical energy. In some cases, it can also give the user limited telepathy and/or telekinesis. It is highly addictive and has some serious side-effects, including blindness, multiple aneurysms, strokes, and cardiac arrest. Glitterdust is also known as: Glitz, Sparks, Dust, and Golden Ash Glitterdust users are called: Glitzers, Sparkers, Dusters, and Ashers
Haven	Earth’s third colony planet. James and Eva Champion were born on Haven. It’s Nicole’s home of record, even though she was born in space.
Holo-Board	A holographic “chalkboard” in front of a classroom or conference room. Whatever is typed on the holo-board’s computer appears as a holograph hovering in front of the room.
Holo-Display	A holographic “screen” is more complex than a holo-board. They are usually used for computers; however, there is a large one in front of the bridge as well. Smaller ones are used for in home entertainment vids.
Jahrl	Earth’s first colony planet. It is the seat of the Commonwealth of Federated Colonies (CFC) and Ranger Corps Headquarters.
Jenny Sue	A family run mining ship captained by Helene Cook (Peter Cook’s great aunt). Peter’s parents transferred to this ship when Peter was 11 years old, and he started working as helmsman at 13.
Jonas	CFC Patrol ship captained by Eduardo Dumas. Nicole became the youngest Chief Engineer on this ship. The Ganen Gang took the ship enslaving the crew. Nicole escaped on her life pod.
The Mermaid	A Private Science Ship captained by Marion Leopard, and Nicole’s place of birth. The captain destroyed the ship when the Ganen Gang attacked. The crèche and the four adults watching the children escaped. Nicole Champion was 125 days old.
Nodar	Earth’s fourth colony planet. Home of the missing Duke Yorick Gallant. Also, the home office of several transportation companies. The largest being Nodar Shipping Enterprises (NSE).
Nuts and Bolts	The two re-appropriated pirate ships that the Rangers used to land on Ganen’s Moon.
Odin	Ranger controlled planet in sector three, which is used by the Ranger Corps for advanced and ground training.
Opal Garrison	Ranger controlled orbital and planet in sector sixteen. The orbital is used for supplies and personnel transfers and the planet below is a training garrison for advanced and ground training.
Orbital	All the worlds in the CFC have an hourglass-shaped orbital with a docking ring encircling the center. The orbital houses customs, taxi services, shipping offices, restaurants, and hotels. They have a landing bay for smaller shuttles, and the larger ships dock at an airlock in the docking ring, which connected to the station via pressurized bridges, which give it a spoked-wheel appearance.
Pants: Green, Orange and Blue	Color code for the slaves on Ganen’s moon. Green pants indicate a worker, orange pants indicate a slave foreman, and blue is a slave that works in the Glitterdust processing plant.
Personal Data Pad (PDP)	Personal handheld computer. Used for personal work, messaging, games, reading, net access, and anything a phone or tablet is capable of today.
Ranger Academy	CFC university for training Rangers. It is housed in a space stationed orbiting the planet Odin. It is considered the best university in the galaxy.
Ranger Badge	Commonwealth of Federated Colonies Ranger badge is a five pointed star. On each point is the initial of the first five colonies: Jahrl, Lakosi, Haven, Nodar, and Amarise.
Ranger Corps	The military and police force for the Commonwealth of Federated Colonies (CFC). Each world in CFC has Rangers stationed on the ground. However, there are Rangers stationed on ships that patrol throughout CFC space. Headquarters for the Rangers is in Baldric City on Jahrl.
Ranger Outpost	There are ten space stations and two planets throughout the galaxy controlled by the Ranger Corps. These outposts support the daily operations of the Rangers similar to Earth’s police stations.
Skimmer	A space-to-ground vehicle used to transport people from the station to the planet below. It got its name because when driven around on a planet, it skims about a meter off the ground.
Third Talon	One of Ganen’s repurposed ships. It is the ship that Ganen assigns Peter to.
Vid	A movie or video.
Zapper	Zapper is the brand name for a hand-held, battery-powered device that delivers an electric shock. A level one zap produces a buzz with slight pain that gets a person’s attention. Levels two and three increase the pain the buzz produces. A level four zap can immobilize a person for up to 30 seconds. A level five, sustained zap will kill a person. The Ganen Gang uses Zappers to control the slaves. Other devices of this type are non-lethal and do not have a level five.
Zephyr	A scout class exploration ship captained by Willbur Rodgers. This ship is the first ship to use the new Winston Specialty engines.