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| Heaven and earth --what we would call the universe and any alternate dimensions. In the mythology of Talan, All is comprised of Center, the abode of the Starlord; Here, the physical universe cotaining Talan and all the stars, which is ever-expanding; the Void, a meta-physical dimension containing the Web of Life; and Beyond, the realm of the Creator. | |
Art
The skills of magic. Commonly called the Art because it seemed that only certain people had the talent for spell casting.
Bordana
A flowering plant which grows only
in Galbard. Often, this name is used as shorthand for the flowerís
pollen.
The flower is an annual and, for reasons unknown, is
exceedingly difficult to grow in the same plot on consecutive seasons and
is not known to grow wild. It produces one flower, which rapidly
blooms and remains pristine until the first freeze. Throughout the
spring and summer, the flower produces about one pearl-sized seed each
week in the midst of its pollen. Belonging to its own family, its
origins are unknown, although popular legend has it that the first flower
blossomed at the site where the elwen Elbrian died of sorrow shortly after
the founding of Galbard. Raising the flower requires particular skill
with the growtion brewed by Galbardian horticulturists. In turn,
the flowerís pollen is the key ingredient for the elvesí growth potion.
Regarded in Galbard, which uses the
flower itself as the royal symbol of King Avril, as the mark of an expert
gardener, the plant is beautiful if simple. When successfully raised,
the plants are no closer than one foot apart and grow at uniform rates
over the course of three weeks commencing about a fortnight before the
end of Death (the season) to a height of two feet. The rosewood-colored
stalk is always straight but has four ribbon-like extrusions that spiral
from beneath the ground to the leaf cluster about three knuckles below
the flower. As for the leaf clusters, there are only two, consisting
of eight dark green, heavily red veined leaves growing at even angular
separation, one set two knuckles off the ground and the previously mentioned
set below the flower itself. The lower set at full growth reaches
eight knuckles long, with each leaf broad and pointed. The upper
set consists of leaves about half the length of those below. The
flower itself consists of four teardrop shaped broad petals of stark white,
with fine networks of indigo veins. Each petal is four knuckles long,
converging on a hemispherical bed of blue pollen for which the flower is
famous.
Bordana pollen is a magical medium,
rich in pneumium. Itself odorless, it can enchant many other odiferous
compounds; however, its effectiveness is short-lived due to the pollenís
rapid decay. At best, if the humidity is carefully controlled, the
pollen may last as long as one year. Although it dramatically reduces
the applications to which it may be applied as a medium, it can nevertheless
be ground, concentrated by passing wood alcohol through the grind, and
then evaporated into a white powder and preserved with tincture of lemon.
In this form it is called Lugremint, and, due to the ease of its concealment,
this is the form that is normally (illegally) exported from Galbard.
Lugremint, which smells vaguely like pennywort mint, is useful primarily
in liquid potions, the most famous of which is a femaleís cologne, Deleriance,
produced by dissolving Lugremint in harbor seal oil together with rose
oil as the signal. This pleasant smelling perfume is guaranteed to
raise amorous feelings among any male breathing its vapors for as long
as he remains in its vicinity. The narcosists of Langbard prize Lugremint,
although how they use it they consider a trade secret.
Jessar treasured the calmative, or
even intoxicating, properties Bordana pollen exhibited when mixed naturally
with the fragrance of honeysuckle. He found this property useful
when trying to concentrate on matters best solved using intuition.
He experimented with roses as well, however, but found the resulting restive
feeling troublesome.
Chronologist
A wizard specializing in the magic
of chronology or time, subspecialist of a Diviner. Many of this wizardís
spells will focus on divining the star paths or voyaging on the river of
time. This is a very rare subspecialty; generally, there are no more
than two dozen of these mystics practicing chronology in all Talan.
Ever since the Technological Age, the Star Lord has also appointed one
Chronologist, known as The Chronologist. In the Innocent Age, this
was the solon Ardan. At the start of the Sacred Age, the solowen
Unobrin took over the position, while the half-solon Stefir held the post
during the Age of Dooms. At the end of an age, the Chronologist succeeds
to the post of Star Lord.
Curse
A powerful spell that bestows some evil upon a person. The curse is one of the major powers of a witch. A curse is a very personal spell. It cannot usually be cast upon any two persons with the same result. Since the spell is so individualized, it is also difficult to remove a curse from someone.
Some witches, however, specialize in the removal of curses. Most normal mystics have only limited success in removing curses.
There are a wide variety of curses, but there are several aspects common to any curse. First, it is not physical. A curse cannot give someone big feet, for instance. Second, curses usually have some kind of trigger (for Jessar’s curse, for example, the trigger was learning the star name of someone). Third, curses are unpredictable. Not even the witch who cast the curse can tell when the curse will manifest itself or in what manner. Lastly, curses always affect others more than the person bearing the curse. Their very purpose is, after all, to make the person cursed an outcast.
Deleriance
A perfume fabricated from harbor seal oil, rose signal, and Lugremint, a Bordana extract. Made in Gerego and sold at premium prices throughout West-realm, this perfume is famous for its reputed ability to charm males. Although women have been known to use the perfume to seduce a preferred male, most consider this at best risky and unethical, since there is no effective way to limit its effect to a particular recipient. Hence its use is almost always confined to expensive bordellos, although there is one recorded instance of use by Luela, a concubine of King Lirnador. Aside from having the desired effect on the King, to the detriment of the First Table, it also led a Chamber Guard to his demise when he fell in love with the forbidden concubine. In an extremely dilute cologne (using wood alcohol), called Rosalik, many women enjoy using it.
Half-elf
The child of an elf (or
elwen) and a human. Since elves themselves are a hybrid race that
descended from unions of Solon (or Solowen) and humans, half-elves are
not a proper race. In fact, if the half-elf is the child of a male
human and an elwen, only the knowledgeable and observant can distinguish
the child from a normal human. If, on the other hand, the child is
the offspring of a woman and a male elf, the child will be a half-elf,
rather male or female and will have a mixture of the characteristics of
humans and elves. Half-elves rarely breed true, producing instead
offspring that are nearly indistiguishable from elves or humans, with an
equal chance of either emerging.
In the Age of Dooms, mixed marriages
are rare outside Walanar in the West-realm, where such marriages, though
accepted, are still uncommon.
Jessar is commonly mistaken for a
half-elf although he is actually half-Solon.
The royal lineage of the West-realm
descended from repeated unions of half-elves and humans, a fact which probably
accounts for their long (two and a half centuries is not unusual) lifespan.
Jessar
Half-elf son of Gilana and an unknown man from West-realm. Born 9 Growth, 9012 AD in Silarom, Galbard, he is 6’ tall, with black, curly hair. At the start of Preamble to the Stars, he is a day shy of 31.
Prior to Jessar’s birth, King Avril exiled Jessar’s father. Five days before Jessar’s tenth birthday, when Gilana would have taken him to the Observatory, she vanished. Two days later, other Galbardians sold Jessar into indentured slavery, where he spent the next 18 years of his life in Langbard. For reasons unknown to the half-elf, his owners terminated his indenturement prematurely, somehow blocked all memories of his enslaved years, and sent him back to Plasis. At the end of the voyage, a golden-haired, scurvy sailor gave him a note indicating that if Jessar wanted to see his mother alive again, he’d better show up at the Council in three years. Once Jessar reached Plasis, Ogador and Stefir, at the request of a captain of the winged horsemen from a Lord of West-realm, met him at the slave ship and acted as executors of Gilana’s estate, since she had been declared legally dead.
The two friends opened a security deposit box, giving Jessar what seemed to be the star ring within and the deed for Gilana’s estate. Although, by the laws of Galbard, Jessar should have inherited the post of Foreign Minister of Galbard from his now-legally-deceased mother, King Avril did not know of Jessar’s release from indenturement and hence did not notify Plasis of Jessar’s right to the post. Therefore, when the Council started, Jessar could not participate, except as a spectator during the public sessions. Nevertheless, even as a spectator, he was able to receive the communiqué of the Wedroth West-realm delegate apologizing for the Great Plunder of Silarom.
When Jessar returned to Silarom on his birthday the following year, he delivered the document to King Avril, who, although he wanted money to help finance weapons for his army, was grateful enough that he formally approved Jessar’s ascension to the post of Foreign Minister. Unfortunately, many of Jessar’s neighbors rioted, trampling the plants growing wildly in the estate and exiling his friends. Jessar spent the next three years restoring his mother’s gardens to their previous splendor and awaiting his friends’ return for a journey back to Plasis for the next Great Council of Countries. Preamble to the Stars begins when Jessar’s friends arrive back in Silarom.
Lynx
Nickname for Jessar, originally derived from a gypsy legend. This is also Sabretha’s favorite name for Jessar. Gypsies view the lynx as a mysterious, lonely creature. The Wesari also view the lynx as mysterious, but because of their reputation as troubleshooters, they respect the lynx. The frontiersmen view the lynx as a symbol of freedom, and the Rothland mutats believe the lynx is a harbinger of doom. In Daramos, there exist dire or giant lynx.
The Gelvenum mythology regarding the lynx views him as the Gypsy Liberator, the one who will end their nomadic lifestyle. He will be a Holvenum who, returning from indenturement, wields great magic and commands a great army to drive invading Bulks and Bulk-men from Galbard. In their legend, by the left side of the gypsies’ liberator is a giant lynx, and on his right side is a sword maiden.
Observatory Stone
A stone marker one foot tall and six knuckles in width, with a spherically domed top. It is used to mark a possible position of the Observatory so that the Civilized Peoples may locate the Starlord for the Ringing ceremony. Each country of appreciable size or population will have at least one of these stones. In Galbard the only stone is located two days to the north of Silarom, along the Galbard Thruway, about five hundred feet north of a gypsy campsite.
solowen
A female member of the Solon race.
The noun is both singular and plural, depending upon its usage.
Stefir
Half-solon son of Lalmara, a solowen, and Elmir, an elven member of the Cult of Vyxana. He is the chronologist for the Age of Dooms. Born 80 Prosper, 8823 SA in Shalanka, Mirdar, he is 6’ 6” tall, with white hair and gray eyes. Unless he has reason to conceal his occupation, he wears a long, black robe with a cowl. He also carries a barn owl named Silentwing as his familiar on his left shoulder. An ewe staff is his Symbol of Power. At the start of Preamble to the Stars, he is 9058. Storr, the last star in the handle of the Great Cup is his patron star.
Stefir’s conception occurred at the height of the Cult’s power. Elmir his father administered a Crystal of Fertility on his mother and then raped her. A year later, she died in birthing her son, but not before scarring Elmir with a twin to his dedication scar on the opposite cheek. Elmir, a powerful elf in the Cult’s hierarchy had Stefir raised for ten years by his maids. Just after Stefir got his star ring, Lufir, the chronologist of the age captured Stefir from Elmir during the Fertility Massacres. Elmir escaped the wars, however, and fled the Sacred Realm.
Lufir began to teach Stefir chronology, but left the young wizard in the care of Lanomira, a widowed elwen of the Learned Elves. At the end of the age, when Lufir disappeared, Lanomira fled west with the elves who settled in Walanar, living among the erstwhile Vandiel clan there. Lanomira completed the mystical training of Stefir, who also profited from the magical texts Lufir left behind for his protégé. The elwen suffered the Calling in 243 AD, leaving Stefir by himself in Lendor Tower, his Walanari residence. When West-realm conquered Walanar in 314 AD, Stefir became the West-realm Crown Wizard, a post he held ever after. In 367, King Astenor had Tower Elbredir built for the wizard in gratitude for the latter’s saving the life of his Primary Concubine in the Boudoir Battle, when New Varbistron attempted to end the line of the West-realm with traitorous Royal Guards.
In 1078, Stefir first met Rubetha, a Valkara necromancer hired on by the Governor of Sidan to fight the Undying. Becoming quite accomplished at necromancy himself, Stefir eventually defeated the mystic maiden in a magical melee in 2249. He built her a villa outside Sidan two years later, where they lived in various stages of happiness for almost one hundred years. The Valkara had lost her powers along with her virginity, however, and she grew both melancholy and lustful. During the Third Incursion of 2333, Stefir could no longer fulfill his duties from afar, and while he was in Wedroth for King Baldaron’s summons, Rubetha left, disappearing from Stefir’s life forever. After the war, Stefir requested and was granted furlough. During the Hundred Year Furlough, the chronologist scoured the lands searching for Rubetha before finally giving up.
Valkara
A member of the Valkar.
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