The Curse on the Chosen (The Song of the Tears Book 2) (77 page)

Faellem
: The
human species who once inhabited the world of Tallallame. They were a small,
dour people, forbidden to use machines and magical devices, but were masters of
disguise and illusion.

Flangers
: A
soldier and hero in the lyrinx wars, he is stricken by guilt for following
orders and shooting down a Council thapter, and desperate to atone.

Flappeter
: A
large flying creature flesh-formed by Jal-Nish, it has a pair of feather-rotors
growing from the middle of its back. Flappeters are controlled by bonded
riders, using enchanted amulets, and any harm to either flappeter or rider
causes harm to the other.

Flesh-forming
:
A branch of the Secret Art invented by the lyrinx but now used by Jal-Nish.

Garr, Garrflood
:
The largest and wildest river in Meldorin. It arises to the west of Shazmak and
runs to the Sea of Thurkad east of Sith.

Gate
: A
structure powered by the Secret Art, which permits people to move instantly
from one place to another. Also called a portal.

Ghâshâd
: The
ancient, mortal enemies of the Aachim, they were a race born to serve
unquestioningly. They were corrupted and swore allegiance to Rulke in ancient
times, but when he was imprisoned in the Nightland they took a new name, Whelm,
and served Yggur for a time. When Rulke escaped, they became Ghâshâd again, but
upon his death swore to take no master ever after.

Ghorr
: The
corrupt former Chief Scrutator of the Council of Scrutators, and Flydd’s bitter
enemy, now dead.

Gilhaelith
:
An eccentric, amoral geomancer and tetrarch, he died by self-crystallisation at
the end of the lyrinx war.

God-Emperor: The title assumed by Jal-Nish Hlar
sometime after he took control of the world with the Profane Tears.

Gothryme
: An
impoverished manor near Tolryme in Bannador, on Meldorin Island. In the Time of
the Mirror it belonged to Karan. Colm is the nominal heir but his family fled
during the war and now it is occupied by people in the favour of the
God-Emperor.

Great Library
:
Founded at Zile by the Zain in the time of the Empire of Zur, it lasted for
thousands of years but disappeared from the Histories during the lyrinx war.

Great Tales
:
The greatest stories from the Histories of Santhenar. A tale can only become a
Great Tale by the unanimous decision of the master chroniclers. In four
thousand years only twenty-three Great Tales were made, the twenty-third being
acclaimed by many as the greatest – Llian of Chanthed’s Tale of the
Mirror. More tales were written during the lyrinx war but they don’t have the
same force, as they were written as propaganda at the Chief Scrutator’s behest.

Histories, the
:
The vast collection of records that chronicle more than four thousand years of
history on Santhenar. The culture of Santhenar is interwoven with and
inseparable from the Histories, and the most vital longing anyone can have is
to be mentioned in them. Families and clans also keep their personal Histories.

Human species
:
There were four distinct human species: the Aachim of Aachan, the Faellem of
Tallallame, the old humans of Santhenar, and the Charon who came out of the
void. All but old humans could be very long-lived. Matings between the
different species rarely produced children (see Blending).

Irisis Stirm
:
A heroine of the lyrinx war, and Nish’s lover at the end of the war, she gave
her life to try to save Nish from his father’s vengeance.

Jal-Nish Hlar
:
Nish’s father. He suffered massive injuries from a lyrinx attack during the war
and begged to be allowed to die, but Nish and Irisis saved his life. Now
hideously maimed and unable to repair himself even with the power of the tears,
he controls the world as God-Emperor and plays malicious games with his
enemies, though he has a secret fear that the world is under threat, once
again, from the void. At the end of Book One he pleaded with Nish for help to
atone for all his wrongs, but Nish, thinking Jal-Nish was playing another
malicious game, repudiated him, and only realised too late that Jal-Nish was
genuine.

Karan
:
During the Time of the Mirror, two centuries and more ago, she was a young
woman of the house of Fyrn, but with blood of the Aachim from her father,
Galliad, and old human and Faellem blood from her mother. This made her triune,
though she did not know it. A sensitive whose home was Gothryme, Karan was the
heroine of the Tale of the Mirror and wedded Llian at the end of it. She is now
reviled as Karan Kin-Slayer, for killing Llian and her children, then herself,
though no one can understand why.

Klarm
: The
former Dwarf Scrutator is a great mancer and a handsome, cheerful, brave man.
He was one of Flydd’s greatest allies during the lyrinx war.

Lauralin
:
The continent east of the Sea of Thurkad.

League
:
About 5000 paces, three miles or five kilometres.

Llian
: An
ostracised Zain, he was a master chronicler, a teller of the Great Tales, and
one of the heroes of the Tale of the Mirror, which he wrote and which became
the twenty-third Great Tale. He is now reviled as Llian the Liar, the master
chronicler who dared to corrupt the histories and write a Great Tale that
wasn’t true.

Lyrinx
:
Massive winged humanoids, some of whom are great mancers, who escaped from the
void to Santhenar at the end of the Time of the Mirror. See also Lyrinx War.

Lyrinx War
:
The 150-year-long war between the winged lyrinx and the peoples of Santhenar,
which ended ten years ago when the lyrinx were defeated and were given the
alien-infested world of Tallallame for their own.

Maelys Nifferlin
:
A shy, demure girl of nineteen, one of the last of her clan, who was compelled
by her mother and aunts to rescue Nish and get pregnant to him, so as to
restore the clan. She did rescue Nish, and accompanied him on many adventures,
though he, still obsessed with his beloved Irisis, repudiated her tentative
advances and Maelys was so mortified that she was not game to try again.

Maigraith
:
An orphan brought up and trained by Faelamor, she was a master of the Secret
Art. She became Yggur’s lover, briefly, and at the end of the Time of the
Mirror she fell for Rulke and became pregnant to him not long before he died.

Malien
: An
Aachim, and once one of their leaders, she was an ally of Flydd and Yggur
during the lyrinx war but has not been seen since it ended.

Mancer
: A
wizard or sorcerer; someone who is a master of the Secret Art.

Mendark
: A
great mancer from the Time of the Mirror, he took renewal on many occasions but
was killed at the end of the Time of the Mirror.

Monkshart
:
The name taken by Jal-Nish’s former ally and friend, Vivimord, after renouncing
his allegiance. He is a charismatic zealot and mancer, but corrupt. He is
trying to use the Deliverer to bring down the God-Emperor because he believes
that for any man to take such a title is blasphemy.

Nightland
: A
place, distant from the world of reality, where Rulke was kept prisoner for a
thousand years. Tensor made a gate into the Nightland to revenge himself on
Rulke, but only succeeded in letting him out, and shortly the Nightland
collapsed into nothingness, or so it was believed.

Nish
: See
Cryl-Nish Hlar.

Numinator, the
:
A mysterious figure who dwells at the Tower of a Thousand Steps, on the Island
of Noom in the frozen south, and secretly controlled the Council of Scrutators.

Nylatl
: A
small but vicious armoured beast created by lyrinx flesh-forming as a weapon in
the war.

Old human
:
The original human species on Santhenar and by far the most numerous.

Phrune
:
Monkshart’s acolyte, healer and perhaps lover; a sadistic killer whom Maelys
slew at the Cursed Flame.

Portal
: See
Gate.

Profane Tears
:
Two tear-shaped globes, called Gatherer and Reaper, with the appearance of
roiling quicksilver, created by the implosion of a node of power thirteen years
ago and stolen by Jal-Nish. When all the nodes were destroyed at the end of the
war, the tears gave him the power to control the world. Gatherer coordinates
all Jal-Nish’s spies and spying devices; Reaper punishes and destroys.

Quartine
:
see Tetrarch.

Rulke
: A
Charon and the greatest of The Hundred. In ancient times Rulke was imprisoned
in the Nightland until a way could be found to banish him back to Aachan. When
Tensor opened a gate into the Nightland, Rulke was able to escape into
Santhenar, but he was later killed by Tensor.

Santhenar, Santh
:
The least of the Three Worlds, home of the old human peoples.

Secret Art: The use of magical or sorcerous powers
(mancing). An art that very few can use and then only after considerable
training. The Art was greatly weakened ten years ago, after Tiaan destroyed all
the nodes of power, thus concentrating virtually all mancery in Jal-Nish’s
sorcerous Profane Tears.

Shadow Realm
:
The uncanny place through which Flydd hopes to pass, to escape Jal-Nish.

Shazmak
: The
forgotten city of the Aachim, in the mountains west of Bannador. It was sacked
by the Ghâshâd after they were woken from their long years as Whelm.

Span
: The
distance spanned by the stretched arms of a tall man. About six feet, or
slightly less than two metres.

Spying Devices
:
The God-Emperor has many spying devices, such as wisp-watchers, loop listeners
and snoop-sniffers, all relaying information back to the tear, Gatherer.

Talent
: A
native skill or gift, usually honed by extensive training.

Tallallame
:
One of the Three Worlds, once the world of the Faellem. A beautiful,
mountainous world covered in forest but now, in a cosmic irony, infested by
alien creatures from the void.

Taphloid
: An
egg-sized device made from yellow metal, given to Maelys by her father to suppress
the aura created by her talent; it has other, as yet unknown, properties.

Teller
: One
who has mastered the ritual telling of the tales that form part of the
Histories of Santhenar.

Tensor
: The
proud, flawed leader of the Aachim for thousands of years, he let Rulke out of
the Nightland. Tensor was killed at the end of the Tale of the Mirror.

Tetrarch
: a
person bearing the blood of all four human species. Also called quartine.

Thapter: A flying construct.

The Hundred
:
The one hundred surviving Charon who escaped from the void, led by Rulke, then
took Aachan from the Aachim and held them in thrall for thousands of years.

Three Worlds
:
Santhenar, Aachan and Tallallame.

Thurkad
:
Once the greatest city on Santhenar, it was occupied and partly destroyed by
the lyrinx.

Tiaan
: A
troubled heroine first heard of towards the end of the lyrinx war. She
destroyed all the nodes of power at the end of the war, taking most of the
world’s Arts with them, and has not been seen since.

Time of the
Mirror
: The interval spanned by the
Tale
of the Mirror
, roughly 224 to 220 years ago.

Triune
: A
double blending – one with the blood of all Three Worlds, three different
human species. They are extremely rare but may have remarkable abilities. Karan
and Maigraith were triune.

Tulitine
: A
mysterious old woman, healer and perhaps seer, who helped to bring together the
Defiance.

Vivimord
:
See Monkshart.

Void, the
:
The spaces between the Three Worlds. A Darwinian place where life is more
brutal and fleeting than anywhere. The void teems with the most exotic life
imaginable, for nothing survives there without remaking itself constantly.

Whelm: See Ghâshâd.

Xervish Flydd
:
A former scrutator (spymaster and master inquisitor) on the Council of
Scrutators, he was subsequently stripped of his position but helped to
overthrow the corrupt scrutators and led the final struggle against the lyrinx
which led to their defeat. Forced to flee at the end of the war, he spent nine
years trapped by infirmity at the top of Mistmurk Mountain. There Maelys
pressured him to take renewal so he could help them fight Jal-Nish and search
for the antithesis to the tears, but the renewal went wrong.

Yalkara
: The
Demon Queen, the ‘Mistress of Deceits’. She took the surviving, sterile Charon
back to the void, to extinction, at the end of the Tale of the Mirror.

Yggur
: A
great and powerful mancer and sworn enemy of Mendark, whose long life and great
gifts have always been a mystery; he was a reluctant ally of Flydd during the
latter stages of the war but has not been seen since.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Ian Irvine was born in Bathurst in 1950, and educated
at Chevalier College and the University of Sydney, where he took a PhD in
marine science.

 
After working as
an environmental project manager, Ian set up his own consulting firm in 1986,
carrying out studies for clients in Australia and overseas. He has worked in
many countries in the Asia-Pacific region. An expert in marine pollution, Ian
has developed some of Australia’s national guidelines for the protection of the
oceanic environment and continues to work in this field.