Free The Wind Rose by B. Roman

miraculous new city, one that Ishtar had envisioned, and then finally manifested. The architecture of every structure that Ishtar designed and built is spectacular, and David marvels at the temples of Science and Nature, Medicine and Healing, and Humanistic Understanding. But his favorite is the Temple of Music and Miracles, once the ominous Prism Palace. It is where Saliana studies with the Temple's music master, Rami.
    “This is amazing,” David remarks. “Here you have an entire temple devoted to music and yet in Coronadus where Rami lived there was no music at all let alone a Temple for it.”
    “You are correct,” Ishtar concurs. “I'm sure if you think about it for a moment, you can figure out why.”
    “Me? Figure it out? Uh - well, can you give me a hint?”
    “All right,” Ishtar agrees. “You remember how enthralled you were with Saliana's song -”
    “Yes, that beautiful song about the Moon Singer. It was the first sound I had heard since before I went deaf. It was as though an angel was calling me and I followed it to the Island.”
    “Well, it was Rami who programmed Saliana's song with secret musical codes that correlate to the codes in the Rose Crystal Pendant. This is why her music has miraculous healing power and why your sister was able to rise out of her wheelchair and walk.”
    “Because Saliana gave me the Rose Crystal to bring home for Sally,” David concludes. “And…oh, no…because I had the Rose Crystal, there could be no Temple of Music here.”
    David is distraught, to think that, again, he was the cause of Ishtar's loss. First his experiments with crystals caused an earthquake that separated Ishtar and his wife, and then his taking the Rose Crystal home with him also meant he was taking away all music from Coronadus.
    “But now we have it back again,” Ishtar tells him soothingly.
    “But how?” David asks, confused. “The Rose Crystal is missing. My father accidentally gave it away.”
    “Your father didn't really give it away, David. I took it back.” Again, Saliana appears as if from nowhere.
    David turns sharply at the sound of her voice. “You did? Why, Saliana? Why would you do that to Sally?”

Twenty-one
    “The Rose Crystal was created to heal and to sustain life through its music, but right now it is troubled,” Saliana explains, now joining David and Ishtar on their walkabout. “It is picking up damaging vibrations in the atmosphere of your Port Avalon, and that's what interfered with Sally's recovery. I couldn't take the chance that the codes would be broken or discovered by someone who had ill motives.”
    “What do you mean?”
    “There are things happening in your home town that are disruptive - the fighting, the prejudice, the environmental problems, the erratic weather changes, the fear of an Apocalypse. They all point to a breakdown in Universal Law, especially the laws of music.”
    “Amazing! That's just what Dr. Ramirez says,” David tells her.
    “He's right,” Saliana agrees. “But he is not being completely truthful with you.”
    “Why? Why would he lie to me?”
    Rami, also appearing from no discernible place interjects, “I suspect that your Dr. Ramirez is creating the destructive musical vibrations.”
    David refuses to believe it. The professor has been acting strange lately, and that new composition that David downloaded from Dr. Ramirez's keyboard is wildly out of control. But his idol and mentor could not possibly create havoc in the world with the music he so loves. It must be a mistake.
    “Maybe he is doing it accidentally,” David suggests, “I mean there are only so many combinations of notes.”
    “Actually, musical variety is virtually infinite,” Rami corrects him. “There are strings, winds and percussion instruments all making their own unique sounds with the same notes. A middle C on a piano sounds very different from middle C on a violin. Then you have the unique tenor of an electronic synthesizer. Add to this the