The Devil's Deuce (The Barrier War) (82 page)
Read The Devil's Deuce (The Barrier War) Online
Authors: Brian J. Moses
Beauty (White)
– As a virtue, beauty has nothing to
do with physical appearance. It is a state of relative balance between the
other six virtues, desirous because of the purity and stability it represents
in a man of God. The six primary virtues do not have to be in “perfect” balance
for this virtue to become a paladin’s reflection, and leading scholars
currently conjecture that each man has within him an ideal balance specific to
his own life, and seeking an ideal
personal
balance is more meaningful
than aspiring toward some as-yet unknown
universal
balance.
As there is no way to quantify or measure
one’s strength in one virtue over another, the exact nature of this balance is
impossible to study. A better understanding of the virtue is further
complicated by the inexplicable curse that comes over all paladins who attain
the white cloak of beauty. Beginning in 113 AM, every paladin who has had his
reflection change to White has been overcome with an overwhelming compulsion to
cross the Merging, leaving the mortal world behind in some maddened, suicidal
quest.
IV.
Daily
Life
Once a man becomes a full paladin, his life is generally his
own to live as he sees fit within the tenets of the Prismatic Order, however
all men are expected to continue to learn and improve themselves to be better
men and better soldiers of God. Prismatic chapterhouses are located in many
major cities throughout Lokka, and most paladins prefer to live in or nearby
one of these cities so they are available if called to serve in a
jintaal
or some other official capacity.
Green and Blue paladins frequently travel throughout Lokka
(political borders mean little to paladins, who are universally revered and
treated as honored guests) offering their services as healers and officiators
of justice. Payment is never asked, but donations are willingly accepted and
sent back to the Prismatic Order to fill its coffers. When they’re not training
to hone their combat skills, Red paladins are often found searching throughout
the land for nests of demons. Violet paladins are the evangelical wing of the
Prismatic Order, spreading the religious teachings and providing spiritual
guidance to all in need. Orange paladins are most often found in libraries and
other centers of learning, and the rare times one is found out and about in the
world, it’s usually in pursuit of some obscure text or source of research.
Yellow paladins frequently serve as advisors to all levels of government and
handle most of the administrative needs of the Prismatic Order.
About the only thing I love more than writing is being a
husband and father. Thanks to my brothers, I started playing Dungeons &
Dragons sometime around the second grade and read my first real fantasy book a
year later. I blame them for my fervent love of a genre that’s come so far just
in my lifetime, and I can’t help but feel like it’s a little arrogant of me to
offer my own work into the world for your enjoyment. I love these books, and my
hope is that if you’re sticking with me, you think they’re pretty damn cool,
too.
Learn more about the Pandemonium War saga at
www.PandemoniumWar.com
,
including chapter-by-chapter annotations for each book in the series.
The
Devil’s Deuce
[1]
- An excerpt from a paper found hidden on a shelf in the library of the
Prismatic Order’s chapterhouse in
Berilana
. Both the
author and the date of the writing are unknown (although it would seem to
predate
Ferrin
Gephart’s
coining the term “gravity”) – for obvious theological reasons, no one has ever
claimed ownership of this document.
[2]
- Obviously, the writing of this text also predates the return of Birch
de’Valderat, the one known as the Gray paladin, who is (at the date of
this
writing) the only paladin of the White Facet to cross into Hell and return. For
more details on his return, see Volume 1 of
The Barrier War
,
Hunting The Three
.
[3]
- An account from Corporal Harold
Jemke
, human
guardsman assigned to the Barrier, recorded one week after the paladin
expeditionary force crossed into Hell in 1012 AM.
[4]
- Capital city and home of the Prismatic Order. The name is derived from the
dwarven word for “anvil”.
[5]
- The immortal word for “vicious”.
[6]
- See Volume 1 of
The Barrier War
,
Hunting The Three
.
[7]
- In the immortal tongue, the word
kythe
means “to make known to,” as in
sharing one’s thoughts.
[8]
- A dwarven term for a member of a city’s police-guard. Most such units have
officially adopted the term for themselves.
[9]
- Formal name for the last three days of the standard week, from
Octday
through
Decaday
.
Traditionally, these are days of rest. This period includes the primary day of
worship, Niday.
[10]
- A home in which a dwarf has died must be cleansed with fire before anyone may
sleep under its roof. (This is rarely a hazard, as dwarven homes are almost
universally made from stone.) A home where a dwarf died as a result of murder
must be left vacant for a year and a day to allow the dwarf’s spirit to return
to the earth, rather than being drawn to the inhabitants. A massacre on the
order of what happened at Den-Furral would, in keeping with their beliefs, necessitate
permanent abandonment of the location, lest any of the slain inhabitants’ souls
be drawn back and denied eternal rest in the earth.
[11]
- Innately, a dakkan can change between its flying form, which resembles a
dragon and is large enough to easily carry several riders, and its runner form,
which is wingless and only slightly larger than a horse. Dakkans can also
assume one other animal form of their choice (e.g. a lion, drann, or hawk).
Dakkans cannot change into the form of humans or demi-humans.
[12]
- Using the prefix for an elf’s sect is customary when initially addressing
him, but after the initial address it is no longer necessary.
[13]
- An elven term used to denote a valued youth or protégé.
[14]
- Elves are long-lived and will typically live for up to 250 years before dying
naturally of old age.
[15]
- A blind, dwarf-sized worm that chews through stone. Dwarves use them to
create large passages rather than digging themselves.
Dugger’s
blood is thought to be poisonous.
[16]
- Dwarven words for “The Harvest Month” and “The Vintage Month”. For more
details on the
Lokkan
calendar, see Appendix A in
Volume 1 of
The Barrier War
,
Hunting The Three
.
[17]
- Merishank made three unsuccessful attempts to annex the smaller, mountainous
country of
Sella
, beginning with the First Merishank
War (as it’s known in
Sella
) in 852 AM. It is to the
credit of the
Sellan
army that the country has
remained free for centuries despite repeated assaults by the world’s largest
and most militaristic nation.
[18]
- A dwarven term for a city’s police-guard, which most units have officially
adopted for themselves.
[19]
- The literal translation is “Life Force”. The Elan’Vital are the elite warriors
of the elven kingdom. They protect the royal family, carry out special
missions, and are utterly devoted to the safety of the kingdom.
[20]
- A
fabolen
is an elven custom dating back to the Age
of Lords in which a guest relates a story to his host as a show of gratitude
for his hospitality. A courteous host would then relate a story of his own.
Story telling was a highly valued art among the elves, and many famous orators
did little more than travel from home to home telling and collecting stories.
Fabolens
mostly fell out of style in the second century AM.
[21]
- The seventh hour after midday is traditionally when night officially falls in
elven thinking, no matter when the sun actually sets. Such a reference
therefore carries double weight when considered in elven philosophy, as the
seventh hour is synonymous with death.
[22]
- The evening meal is never eaten until nightfall.
[23]
- King
Li’Gaerth
Li’Hirin
is the subject of several elven histories and scholarly papers.
[24]
- The “Book of Light, Wood, Stone, and Shadow” – the elven holy book, written
during the Dark Ages prior to the Epiphany and the Age of Lords.
[25]
- A form of gauntlet worn with armor to protect the wrist and forearms.
[26]
- Hellfire is water from the Dena-
Fol
(“River of
Flame”) that has been cursed to increase its potency. It burns intensely and
consumes its fuel so slowly it’s virtually inexhaustible. The liquid flame will
ignite any substance (other than metal or stone) through simple contact. It
cannot be doused by any means except holy intercession – such as a paladin’s
prayer or holy water – although it will eventually expire without intervention.
Demons are generally immune to its effects, but still most find it
uncomfortable.
[27]
- A breed of ants that remains active during the winter months and dormant
during the summer.
[28]
- Birch is apparently unaware of modern studies of dakkan breeding, no doubt
due in part to his extended absence from Lokka. Dakkans have been shown to
exert a considerable amount of control over their reproductive cycle and can
hold a pregnancy in abeyance for months or even years if necessary, apparently
placing the fetus into a type of stasis. The longest pregnancy on-record for a
dakkan is seven years, six months, and eight days.
[29]
- An immortal’s
āyus
is the very substance of their being and the
measure of their strength and power. When we speak of a demon or angel being
more or less powerful than another, it is a question of the strength of their
āyus
rather than physical strength.
[30]
-
Parsher’s
Disease is a condition in which the
afflicted’s
skin dries and sloughs off in flakes. As the
disease progresses, new skin cannot be generated quickly enough, and it slowly
eats away the infected areas, causing other infections and complications that
quickly lead to limb loss or death.
[31]
- Oddly enough, there is no record of the name of the first paladin, nor to
what Facet he belonged. It is possible the angels who took part in these events
may still remember.
[32]
- There are scattered references to elves assisting with the construction in
some manner, but no credible source has been uncovered to definitively document
their presence nor the manner of their assistance.
[33]
- Trainees must be in sufficient physical condition to endure the rigors of the
paladin training process, regardless of their age or infirmities. Few
allowances are made for handicaps, and it is up to the individual to prove his
own fitness for training. Boys who are considered too young to train are
sometimes taken in as squires or messengers within a chapterhouse while they
mature.
[34]
- It should be noted that for the change to take effect, for a man to be truly
accepted as a paladin, the cloak must be placed on his shoulders by a current
member of the Prismatic Order. Many have tried stealing a blessed cloak in the
hopes of imitating a paladin (or simply joining their ranks without undergoing
the rigorous training process), but the cloak will not change without the
willing hand of a paladin to bestow it.
