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G LOSSARY

Abyssal Codex: librarie of the Dresh’ri, buried under the gardens of the Klashean citadel

Aeldryn: religious elder of the Chanaryn

Alchymist: scholar who studies science and the mysteries of the natural world

Almskald: healing ointment for burns and blisters

Arkada: crystal books holding the knowledge of the ta’wyn and the Elder gods

Arrowsprite: narrow wyndship designed for swift passage

Astronicum: chamber for the study of planets and stars

Axis: a ta’wyn of second-highest order

Bad’i Chaa: [aka the Klashean “House of Wisdom”] sole school of the Southern Klashe, an establishment notorious for both its rigorousness and its cruelty

Baseborn: all castes below the royal imri of the Southern Klashe

Bells: measure of time across the Crown, divided dawn, morning, midday, latterday, and Eventoll, and further divided by half-bell, quarter-bell, and so forth

Bhestyan half-swords: short, curved blades, wielded either singly or in pairs, whose alchymy of forging is highly guarded in Bhestya

Bitterroot: a strong stimulant drink served piping hot

Bloodbaerne: victims sacrificed to fuel the Iflelen endeavors

Blood baths: the healing baths of X’or, formed by mineral springs infused with the crimson sap of the sacred Talniss trees

Bogbite: an alcoholic spirit produced in the swamps of Myr

Bridle-bound: individuals under the sway of bridle-song

Bridle-song: the ability to weave tonal vibrations into physical actions, typically to control and manipulate lesser creatures, but skilled bridle-singers have achieved greater effects

Bridling: to bend lesser creatures to one’s will

Brimstan: a sulfurous burning stone

Brotherhood of Asgia: a Rhysian cadre of brutal mercenaries/assassins, the dark mirror to the Rhysian sisterhood

Byor-ga: Klashean raiment worn by the baseborn, covering from head to toe

Chaaen: a Klashean caste of indentured servants, educated at the Bad’i Chaa; the slave wearing an iron collar is a specialist in alchymy; the slave wearing a silver collar is a specialist in religion and history; typically bound by ceremonial ankle chains to their imri master

Chanaryn: tribespeople of the Barrens

Chanr?: tribespeople of Ghodlokh

Cloistery of Brayk: the second-oldest school in Hálendii, located deep in the Myr swamps, where Nyx and Jace studied

Coins: monetary units of the Crown are divided into brass pinches, silver eyries, gold marches

Council of Eight: the eight leaders of a school, standard across all places of higher learning

Crèche: the subterranean home of Daal in the Frozen Wastes

Cryst: [aka “Shriven cryst”] leather bandolier studded in iron and lined by sealed pouches; awarded to Shriven who have achieved mastery in both alchymy and religious studies

Daughter: [also called the “Huntress” or “Dark Daughter”] the Hálendiian deification of the dark side of the moon

Dhelpr?: a desert creature rich in bridle-song

Draakki: Chanaryn word for “dragon”

Draakki nee Baersh: Chanaryn for “Dragon of Black Glass”

Draft-iron: an alchymical forging of iron to make it lighter and stronger, used in the construction of wyndships

Dr?shra: legendary Breaker of Dragons

Dresh’ri: [translates as “Forbidden Eye”] Klashean mystical order of scholars; sigil is a black bat with a golden eye in the center

?reyk: the dark god worshipped by the Iflelen; his sigil is the viperous horn’d snaken

Dysmeld: a ta’wyn word, the antithesis of synmeld

Elder gods: members of a civilization predating even the Pantha re Gaas (the Forsaken Ages)

Eventoll: period of time comparable to that of the evening, when the sun travels its lowest arc in the sky

Eyran: a copper egg that holds and nurtures a Sleeper until its awakening

Falcon’s Wing: a Klashean warship, captained by Prince Mareesh

Farscope: a lensed tool for viewing great distances

Father Above: [or simply “the Father”] the Hálendiian sun god

Fireflit: a bioluminescent flying insect

Firepester: a fatal pestilent disease marked by high fevers and pox

Flashburn: an alchymical solution used to fuel a wyndship’s forges

Flitch: [or whelyn flitch ] an incendiary waxy oil derived from the great sea creatures of the Crèche

Forsaken Ages: [ Pantha re Gaas in the Elder tongue] a mythic era lost in history, marked by the millennia of chaos and death that came before the settlement of the Crown

Fryth: the Klashean goddess of the silvery moon

Fyredragon: name of Rega sy Noor’s second expedition’s ship, now rebuilt and renovated as a vessel for Nyx and company

Gerygoud: a Klashean white robe worn by the imri class

Gjoan Arkives: considered the most guarded and secretive librarie, best known for its mystical texts, located in the walled-off Domain of Gjoa

Guildmaster: leader of a guild, including the Thieves Guild

Gyan-ra: [translates as “godforsaken”] a shunning term among the Chanaryn

Gyn: a tribe of craggy giants, typically mute, who hail from the steppes of northern Aglerolarpok

Hadyss: the Hálendiian god of fire and volcanism

Hadyss Cauldron: a massive bomb dropped from wyndships

Haeshan: imperial family name of Empress Aalia and her brothers Rami and Mareesh

Haeshan Hawk: Klashean royal family sigil—a mountain hawk in flight, with thumb-sized diamonds for eyes and solid gold claws

Ha’eyrie: unit of currency; half a silver eyrie

Har’ll: the Klashean god of fertility

Heartsthorn: name of Graylin’s sword; has been in his family for eighteen generations

Hesharyn: a Chanaryn sand-dancer, an expert in blades and balance

Hieromonk: a scholar who studies religion and history

Highhorn: metal tubing and baffling that runs throughout a wyndship for prompt communication

Honeyclot: a sweet-smelling flower

Horde-mind: the fusion of consciousness shared by Myr bats (and other related species)

Hrakken Horde: the fierce horseback riders of the Dry Marche, bridle-bound to their mounts

Hunterskiff: a small, versatile wyndship used in battle

Hyka: the Klashean ten-eyed god of justice [see “Hykan Code”]

Hykan Code: rule of law and punishment in the Southern Klashe

Hyparia, House of: family of Mikaen and Kanthe’s mother; sigil is a winged horse/stallion

Hyperium: the name of a giant Hálendiian warship (twice the size of a typical wyndship); was destroyed during the siege of Kysalimri

Iflelen: name of a dark cabal within the Shriven order in Hálendii who are sworn to the dark god D reyk

Imri: [translates as “godly” in Klashean] the royal caste of the Klashe

Imri-Ka: imperial title of the Klashean emperor

Ishuka: [translates as “sandstorm” in Chanaryn] a Chanaryn god of the desert

Kalk?a: a Chanr? means of travel over glass

Ka’wyn: a rare Kryst of flesh

Kepenhill: the oldest of Hálendii’s schools, located on the outskirts of Azantiia; home to the Shrivenkeep

Kethra’kai: an ancient tribe that hunts in the greenwoods of Cloudreach; known for their talent in bridle-song

Kezmek: a winged serpent, typically bridle-bound to an assassin

Klashean Arms: the Southern Klashe’s sigil of two curved gold swords crossed against a black background

Knights n’ Knaves: a board game of cunning and skill

Kraena: old name for the horde-mind of the mankrae

Kragyn: the Klashean god of war

Kryst: the highest and most powerful caste of the ta’wyn

Lampree: a ta’wyn -inspired wyndship of unique design

Legionary: military school on the castle grounds of Highmount in Azantiia

Liar’s Lure: a gaseous glow occasionally spotted floating throughout the darker bowers of the swamps of Myr

Lycheens: tentacled creatures native to Malgard in the Klashe, whose long frills of fine hair burn with a paralytic fire

Madyss: ice-giant god in the Hálendii pantheon

Madyss Hammer: the latest and most destructive of Hálendiian Cauldrons

Mag’nee: Panthean for lodestone

Maidenhest: a junior aide to a healer

Malkanian: the Klashean god of the fiery underworld; said to reside in Malgard

Mankra: [plural: mankrae] the infamous “sand wraiths” of the Barrens

Martok: a giant woolly beast with three toes and white fur, curled horns; roams the Ice Shield

Moonfall: the prophecy of the moon crashing into the Urth and destroying all life

Mother Below: [or simply “the Mother”] Hálendiian goddess of the Urth, who is matched with the Father Above

Meskers: biting insects of many regions

Mizzen hold: where gasbag patches are stored

Molag: [plural: molagi] the massive, armored sandcrabs who dwell in the Barrens

Myr bat: the giant winged predators of the swamps of Myr, known for their cunning and venomous nature

Naphlaneum: a Klashean fiery gel that, once ignited, burns so hot that even water cannot douse its fire

Nethyn: a lowly god in the Hálendiian pantheon, whose domain is hidden deep in the Urth

Noorish: a race in the Crèche, descended from the explorer Rega sy Noor

Nyssians: a sect of women in the Crèche who are gifted with the ability to preserve the history of the Crèche and its people

Orksos: domesticated single-horned sea creatures of the Crèche, used to haul skiffs or to be ridden on hunts

Oshkapeers: [also called “Dreamers”] tentacled creatures of the Crèche, engineered with a strong talent in bridle-song

Paladins: imperial guards of the Imri-Ka

Pantha re Gaas: see “Forsaken Ages”

Panthean: species of humans who have inhabited the Crèche for millennia: webbed fingers rising to the first knuckles; smooth, unwrinkled skin; small, pointed ears that lie close to their skulls; green hair the color of the sea

P?rde: a beast of burden of the deep Barrens

Pecche’kan: sun god of the Chanaryn (a fiery molag)

Physiks: healers of the Crown

Pickkyns: fanged poisonous sea creatures from the Crèche

Pleasure serfs: indentured or enslaved men and women in private brothels

Prya: the Klashean god of fate

Quelch Bonnet: venom from an asp that resides in the Shrouds of Dalal ?e a

Quisl: a poisoned dagger weapon used by the Rhysians; also the name of the wingketch piloted by Captain Saekl

Raash’ke: huge bats, inhabitants of the Frozen Wastes who make their home in the Mouth of the World; a subspecies of the Myr bats

Ravka: Chanr? name for the Revn-kree

Razen Rose: a confederacy of spies aligned to no kingdom or empire; said to be stripped alchymists and hieromonks who have been secretly recruited to use their skills to protect and preserve knowledge throughout the rise and fall of realms (symbol: a five-petaled rosebud)

Revn-kree: those ta’wyn who broke from their creators’ path and seek dominance over Urth and the eradication of humanity

Rhysians: matriarchal society, renowned for its assassins, from the Archipelago of Rhys

Root: a lower caste of the ta’wyn, whose primary imperative is in construction, mining, and other scut work

Rykin: poison derived from a fungus found in the forests of the Myre Drysh

Sail, the: term for the Klashean imperial navy

Sailraft: a small craft used mainly for the evacuation of a larger wyndship

Sandraat: common vermin of the Barrens

Scholarium: a combination study and workroom for alchymists and hieromonks

Scythers: massive hunting cats with long, prominent fangs

Sharpened Spur: name of a Bhestyan warship

Shayn’ra: [translates as “Fist of God”] faction of heretical fighters that have opposed the Southern Klashe for over a century, with the ultimate goal of ending the rule of Klashean god-emperors and returning the land’s riches to its people (symbol: an awakening eye; covert salute: circling the left eye with a thumb and forefinger)

Shield, the: term for the Klashean imperial ground forces

Shrive: [plural: Shriven] a sacred order having achieved the Highcryst in both alchymy and religion; a rank marked by a black stripe tattooed across their eyes

Shrivenkeep: a sanctum located deep beneath the school of Kepenhill, where those who achieved the Highcryst in both alchymy and religious scholarship delve into the most arcane of studies; sigil is a book in the grip of a fanged viper

Silvergard: the nine Vyrllian Guard who are King Mikaen’s personal protectors; their appearance has been altered, adding black-ink versions of the Massif sigil to their faces, mimicking and honoring the prince

Skriitch: flying insects that consume flesh, native to the cliffs of Landfall

Skrycrows: swift-winged birds that carry messages in harnesses across their backs

Sleepers: a collection of ta’wyn who were buried deep under the Urth until needed

Slipfoils: one-man wyndships, little more than shells with wings, mounted by sleek balloons; perfect for covert scouting

Sparrowhawk: the name of Darant’s swyftship, eventually cannibalized to aid in the restoration of the Fyredragon

Stormbow: swampland term for rainbow

Strükso: a towering avian predator of the ?rgos forest

Stykler: an incendiary shell packed full of iron filings and glass that turns molten when ignited

Swyftship: a medium-sized wyndship with three forges, designed for agile flying

Synmeld: the ta’wyn word for bridle-song

Ta’wyn: the living bronze artifacts built by the Elder gods to defend the Urth

Tabakroot: a leafed plant that once dried is packed in pipes for smoking

Talniss: a species of tree found in the groves of X’or in the Southern Klashe; prized above all other woods, valued a hundred times its weight in gold

Turubya: a massive anti-inertial machine built by the ta’wyn; its purpose is to set the Urth to rotating once again; one is located in the Frozen Wastes and the other in the sunblasted Barrens

Tytan: the Hálendiian storm god

Unfettered: Klashean term for a foreigner

ürsyns: quilled mounts from the desert of Ghodlokh

Vargr: the huge wolflike species native to the heartwoods of the Rimewood, with amber-gold eyes and dark-striped fur

Venin: a group of bridle-singing Dresh’ri, mutilated to look like bats, who once acted as guardians of the Abyssal Codex

Vulnus: medicinal leeches of the blood baths of X’or

Vyk dyre Rha: [translates as “Shadow Queen” in ancient Klashean] name of the mythic figure riding a winged beast who is prophesied to end the world

Vyrllian Guard: the Hálendiian legion’s most elite fighters, battle-hardened, with heads shaved and faces entirely tattooed in crimson

Whipswords: thin, flexible Klashean blades

Wing, the: term for the Klashean imperial air fleet

Wingketch: a vessel of unique Klashean design; smaller than a swyftship, meant for quick escapes

Wyndships: vessels of the Crown that sail through the air, held aloft by great balloons filled with combustible alchymies and driven by forges fueled by flashburn

X’or: the Klashean goddess of healing

Yinkan: a desert predator who hunts the depths of the Necropolises of Seekh