Julia Renalda-Jen
| Lezarouth Rice | Journal--The Sun Seeker | Julia Renalda-Jen |
Dr. Julia Renalda-Jen (b. 91, d. 187) was the scientific genius behind the Suns of the Latter Days. Although Lezarouth Rice did most of the writing, most of what he wrote came from Dr. Julia, as did the funding for the project. Though they never married, the two were inseperable from their introduction at Hwiinlaan University until Lezaraouth's death in 144. Following his death, Dr. Julia went into seclusion, and her whereabouts were unknown until Tang Wezir's 187 blockbuster, Reminisences with Ren-Jen (Tai-tai publishing). Those who knew her described her as a relentless worker. She had few friends apart from Lezarouth. Those who knew her more than in passing described her as sharp-tongued, but she negotiated her way through pubs, churches, wilderness camps, and the halls of governments, never failing to gain her data. She relied only very little on her partner's genial way and command of languages.
Family of Origin
Julia Renalda-Jen was the daughter of Julia Yeyezue /HOO-lee-ah YEH-yǝ-zoo/ and Feramr Berijit /fǝ-RAH-mer bǝ-RI-jit/. Yeyezue was a professor of philosophy at Wesashiten University on Istedden, a post he had served since a young man. He commanded some respect among the learned, but was unable to advance far due to prejudice against his Yeirøpi heritage. When he was passed over for chair of the department, he resigned, and quit Istedden altogether.
Yeyezue booked passage on a freighter bound for Sun Wukong, and there fell in with a company of expatriates that collected around the local church (before 100, the church on Sun Wukong was dominated by Edenic priests, and so was a frequent gathering place for Edenic travelers. One of these, was Feramr Bereis, son of the famous diplomat Feramr Qon. Yeyezue and Bereis became friends, and Bereis persuaded his father to recommend Yeyezue to the faculty of the Mue Dai as Professor of Edenic. Bereis's younger sister, one Berijit, was kept at home by her protective father, but the one liberty she had secured for herself was to attend classes at the Mue Dai. Since she did not speak Mishese, the only class she could take was Edenic Literature.
Yeyezue took an interest in the attractive Berijit, an association that Bereis at first encouraged. Later, however, he heard rumors that Yeyezue had enjoyed "study sessions" with a number of his female students, and tried to break off the relationship. Alas, he was too late. Berijit was pregnant. Bereis flew into a fury, confronted Yeyezue, and demanded he marry her. Yeyezue agreed. The two were married the next day, and the day after Yeyezue was gone.
What became of Yeyezue is not generally agreed. The Feramrs, and Dr. Julia herself, maintain that Yeyezue jumped aboard a freighter, as he had done when disappointed before. Certainly witnesses to events believed that Yeyezue agreed to the marriage out of fear of Bereis. However, a rumor persisted that the young professor was murdered. No ship leaving Sun Wukong bore a passenger of his name, which was evidence enough for some. Though an official investigation, requested by Feramr Qon and conducted by Sun Wukong authorities, cleared him of any wrongdoing, the rumors spelled the end of Mr. Feramr's illustrious career.
Two individuals with Edenic names left Sun Wukong within a month of Yeyezue's disappearance, and it is entirely probable that the professor used an alias on the passenger manifest, to escape the enraged Bereis. One of these went to Istedden. The other gives that most common of all Edenic names, Semithe Qeyems. This Semithe Qeyems went to Ummajadid, and the following year the International School of Ummajadid hired a professor of philosophy named Garsia Arenesto, a Yeirøpi. Garsia died four years later, and by Ummajadid law his remains may not be disturbed, so it is impossible to confirm whether he was Julia Yeyezue. The evidence suggests it is unlikely. Garsia was described as reclusive and discrete, adjectives never used for the garulous Yeyezue, and it is unlikely that the pale-skinned, broad-faced Yeyezu would have managed to transform himself into the thin, dark-skinned Garsia.
Berejit, however, was convinced that her husband had returned to Istedden. She maintained that Yeyezue truly loved her, but had been frightened away by her brother. With her father's reputation suffering from accusations of murder, she realized that she could save her father by finding and reuniting with her husband. She was unable to gain the list of names from passenger manifests, so, in 90, six months pregnant, she left home, bound for Istedden.
What happened to Berejit on her search for Yeyezue is not known. She visited Wesashiten University in 90. She received a citation in 91 on Eyipril, for creating a disturbance in a sacred place. Also in 92 there is a medical record of treatment for a sprained ankle for a woman of her name on Ragny. She cannot be more definitely place until 95, when she is on Saint Vengeance, but in 91 a freighter bound for Ummajadid lists a record of "born en route: one girl, named Julia Renalda-Jen, to passenger Feramr Berejit, live."
Early Life
As a child, young "Ren-jen" was adventurous. Her mother, transformed into a worldly woman of independent spirit. She often lost track of her daughter for days at a time, but always, when the two were reunited, Ren-jen was happy and well fed. Most people on Saint Vengeance hadn't even heard of a Yeirøpi people, and they could not tell that her surname was not Edenic. On Saint Vengeance, there is something of awed respect for Edenings, the people from whom the Penitent came, the souce of Lifetech. On the downside, Edenings are often viewed as intellectual and effete, but this prejudice is more pointed against males. Ren-jen managed herself.
In 98 Berijit, who had become an experienced traveler, received an offer to manage an exploratory journey to Keenaan. The family was short on cash, and the opportunity exciting to Berijit, but it left her with a difficult choice: take Ren-jen with her, or enroll her in a boarding school. Berijit did not fear the dangers of the journey, but she feared the loss of education for her daughter. Ren-jen had been in school since 96, and she had difficulty keeping up, largely because of the school she missed. Berijit, a loving but never very attentive mother, could not imagine schooling her herself. She enrolled Ren-jen in a parochial school, being the only school she could afford that would agree to take the daughter of a single mother who would be unreachable for years and might never return.
Parochial school was difficult for Ren-jen. She learned to be clever, to escape the eye of the nuns, and never to skip classes or meals. But unlike other children, who misbehaved in social activities, Ren-jen escaped on her own. The engaging little girl who could find a meal or bed at a friendly home was gone. She spent hours exploring the marshes of Saint Vengeance, pretending she was, like her mother, exploring a wild world. At night she sat up late making notes and childish drawings of what she had observed.
Berijit returned in 102, but, cherishing the independence she had had, kept Ren-jen in boarding school, and engaged in management of other explorations both locally and to other worlds. Ren-jen, by this time, had developed regular research projects. While other girls were starting to think about boys, Ren-jen had a detailed schedule of observations, making four rounds into the wilderness every day, at dawn, at dusk, at 5% [ED: equivalent to 12:45am], and at lunch. Her notes from this period are extraordinarily complete, sometimes going as long as 429 days without missing a single observation.
Education
By the time of her majority, Ren-jen had evolved into a dedicated scholar. She went abroad to Setægføred University on Istedden, the pre-emminent school of the time. While Ren-jen was abroad, her mother died of a virulent virus she contracted on Jahannam. Ren-jen received the news at the beginning of her final year, but finished the program and graduated before returning and mourning her mother's passing.