Servant of a Dark God (70 page)

The Crab (territory lord with the most holdings of the Fir-Noy clan)

Fabbis (son of a wealthy Fir-Noy lord)

Leaf (the Eye of Rubaloth)

Lumen (the missing Divine of the New Lands)

Rose (sister to Argoth, wife of Hogan the Koramite)

Rubaloth (Skir Master of Mokad)

Shim (warlord of the Shoka clan)

ARMSMEN

Every clan has various martial orders within it. The ranks of the vast majority of these orders are filled with those who are not full-time soldiers, but farmers, laborers, and craftsmen. However, there are orders in some clans of elite and sometimes professional soldiers. The members of such orders are called armsmen.

BONE FACES

Barbarian raiders from the south who have begun striking Mokaddian holdings by sea.

DREADMEN

Those without lore who are endowed by Divines with weaves of might. When such weaves are worn, they multiply the wearer’s natural mental and physical abilities. However, the weaves carry a cost: worn too frequently, the body wastes, consuming itself to fuel the magic.

ESCRUM

A weave that binds the wearer to a master, allowing communication over long distances.

FRIGHTS

Not completely of the world of flesh, frights feed on Fire. They most often prey on the sick and dying, attaching themselves like great leeches.

GODSWEED

An herb with properties said to repel some creatures such as frights and the souls of the dead. The smoke from one thin braid can rid a house of an infestation for many weeks. But its effect does not discriminate between frights, ancestors, or even the servants of the Creators. Hence the saying: Take care to appease those you’ve chased with smoke.

KING’S COLLAR

A weave wrought by a special order of Divines called Kains. Such collars not only prevent a person from working magic, but also weaken the wearer to make them easy to handle.

SKIR

Orders of beings that inhabit the heavens as well as the deep places of the earth and sea. While invisible to the naked eye, many do exert power in the visible world and can be harnessed by those knowing the secrets. But not all are useful to man. Many orders of smaller skir are deemed insignificant, while other powers are so dreadful none dare summon them.

STONE-WIGHTS

A vanished race whose ruins are found in the New Lands. Some claim plague or war took them. Others find evidence they were destroyed by the Six themselves.

THE SIX

Seven creators fashioned the earth and all life therein. However, upon seeing that the finished work was flawed, the seventh, called Regret, wanted to destroy the work and begin again. The remaining Six, whose names are sacred, refused, but they were not able to overcome Regret. And so it is that the powers of both creation and dissolution still struggle on the earth.

SLETH

Another term for “soul-eaters.” In the Urzarian tongue it literally means “the east wind,” which dries and kills life. Applied to those who, in rebellion of the Glories, use an unsactioned form of the lore of the Divines. They are beings and orders of beings supposedly twisted by their polluted draws. Said to have gotten their lore from Regret, one of the seven Creators who, having once seen the creation, realized its flaws and wanted to destroy it.

THE THREE VITALITIES

All life is made up of one or more of the three vital powers. There are many names for these life forces. The most common terms in the western glorydoms are Fire (sometimes called Spirit), Body, and soul. There are rumors, among those who know the lore, of lost vitalities: powers that have passed out of human ken.

WEAVES

Objects of power. Some can only be quickened and handled by lore masters. Others, wildweaves, are independent of a master and can be used by those who do not possess any lore. Weaves may be made of almost any material; however, gold is used most often for the wildweaves given to dreadmen.

WOODIKIN

Creatures that live in great families beyond the gap in the wilds of the New Lands. About half the size of a man, they are still ferocious and spilled much blood in the battles fought with the early settlers. Although rare, single woodikin are still sometimes seen in human lands.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

For me, writing is about going out to find that which is cool, thrilling, or moving and bringing it back for others to enjoy. The hope of sharing the pleasure I find in the characters, setting, and story is an important part of what keeps me writing, and what kept me going with this project. And so, I want to start by thanking every reader who picks up this book and gives it a go. I hope you are rewarded with an experience full of wonder, suspense, delight, and some poignancy. I’d love to hear from you. Please visit me at JohnDBrown.com.

Next, I must give thanks to my parents: I grew up with a father and grandfather who were florists and pugilists and a mother and grandmother who were literary nuts. The men taught me to prize both the beauty of a Japanese lily arrangement and a blow that could lay a many nose to the side of his face. My mother, may she rest in peace, made sure our annual family vacations were spent at the Shakespearean Festival in Cedar City, Utah. Despite the many things there that forever dangled above my comprehension, I was caught up in the spectacle, considered myself a bard’s man, and enjoyed the ubiquitous tarts (pastries, my friends, not painted women). With such an upbringing, I think it was impossible for some literary production not to bubble forth from my brain, even if there was no guarantee that emanation would ever be anything as grand as, say, a limerick. Luckily, you hold in your hands something that is, if not more grand, at least a bit longer.

For that longer production I am indebted to the wonderful Stacy Hague-Hill and David Hartwell, both for thinking the manuscript was shiny enough to buy and then for putting in the editing work to help me make it better. (Yes, despite the rumors, editors who actually edit have not vanished from the earth.) That same thanks goes to Caitlin Blasdell who saw, edited, and represented (and continues to represent) most excellently. I also appreciate Tor’s production department for their attention to detail.

Many helpful souls read early versions of the manuscript. The accurate reporting of their reader experience changed the story. These folks include Christine Mehring, David Walton, Dean Wesley Smith and the May 2006 novel workshop group, Diana Chamberlain, Elaine Isaak, Eric Allen, Gary Eifert, Isaac Stewart, James Maxey, Jared Smith, Mette Ivie Harrison, Miles Pinter, and Trisha Eifert. A monster thank-you goes to Jason Smith, a writing buddy whose friendship helped keep my creative flame alive through a number of difficult years.

The following provided expert input. Chad Floyd gave me an invaluable view into the world of the blind. The ranchers of Rich County, Utah, unknowingly gave me the main seed of this story. Special recognition goes to Robert, LaRue, and Lenn Johnson for letting a city boy play rancher, vet, and manure man, and to Kent Johnson, Stuart Wamsley, and Burdette Weston for fascinating insights.

Two authors have helped me in significant ways. Orson Scott Card conducted a literary boot camp that saved my literary bucket. David Farland started me on the path to writing for publication and offered inspiration, advice, coconut kurma, and encouragement along the way.

I must thank my four girls, Alexandria, Kassandra, Lilia, and Ellianna, for clamoring after bedtime stories (some of which found their way here) and providing abundant, delicious hugs.

Finally, and most importantly, a lion’s share of the credit goes to my wife, Nellie, who read every word, listened to every hope and fear, and didn’t go mad. She’s a rock, and, I am sure, has already earned a plot of ground in that part of heaven reserved for the spouses of those who write.