Gathering of the Chosen (37 page)

Automatons
. Mechanical beings
created by the Mechanical Goddess to carry out her will, although
the Carnagian Royal Family has been experimenting with making
automatons of their own in recent years.

Darek Takren
. The adopted son of
Jenur Takren and a graduate of North Academy. He specializes in
pagomancy, or ice magic, and is currently the leader of the
Xocionian Monks. He was the protagonist in the
Mages of
Martir
(http://www.timothylcerepaka.com/mages-of-martir/) novels and is a
good friend of Braim Kotogs.

Diog
. The God of the Grave.
Aquarian name: Hamafa.

Godling
. Name for human beings who
are destined to become gods.

Half-gods
. The prototypes of the
gods that the Powers abandoned in the Void after finishing Martir.
Half-gods, while stronger than mortals, are not quite as strong as
gods, although they can give the gods a good fight. They also tend
to be more animalistic and lack some of the higher reasoning
functions of the gods themselves due to their incompleteness, which
makes it possible for beings who are weaker than them to control or
manipulate them. The most well-known half-god is Zeeree, the
Half-God of Poison, who serves Aorja Kitano.

Harnum
. The world that existed
before Martir. It was destroyed by Uron, one of its inhabitants,
and everyone who lived there was killed off. The Powers arrived
many years later and used Harnum's remains as the foundation for
Martir, although some Harnumian buildings and objects can still be
found deep beneath Martir's surface.

Jenur Takren
. A native of Ruwa and
current Magical Superior of North Academy and adoptive mother of
Darek Takren. Like Malock, she was a major character in the
Prince
Malock World
(http://www.timothylcerepaka.com/prince-malock-world/) novels. In
her youth, she was a member of the Dark Tigers Guild, an assassin's
guild based in Ruwa, but eventually left it when she became
disgusted with the Guild's mission. She adopted Darek Takren when
he was only five years old after his birth mother was murdered by
an enemy of hers.

Katabans
. A species of intelligent
beings who exist to serve the gods. 'Katabans' means 'minor
spirit,' as katabans are spirits who often take on physical forms
in order to follow the gods' commands. Their appearances range from
human to beast, depending on their preferences, personality, and
what they need to complete whatever mission given to them by the
gods.

King Tojas Malock
. The son of Queen
Markinia and King Halock of Carnag. Current King of Carnag. He was
the protagonist of the
Prince
Malock World
(http://www.timothylcerepaka.com/prince-malock-world/) novels and
is married to Queen Hanarova. He is a fair and just ruler, although
he spoils his daughter too much.

-Mancy
. A suffix usually attached
to Latin prefixes that denotes the name of a magical discipline.
For example, hydromancy means 'water magic,' pyromancy means 'fire
magic,' panamancy means 'healing magic,' and so on.

North Academy
. The most prestigious
and most difficult to get into magical school in the world. It is
located in the northernmost reaches of the Great Berg and can only
be reached with great difficulty. It is run by Jenur Takren, who is
the current Magical Superior of the school.

Northern Isles
. A region of the
world located on the northern half of the Dividing Line that
consists of thousands of island nations of various sizes. It is
where almost all of Martir's human population is located, as well
as many aquarians.

Northern Pantheon
. The gods who
rule the northern half of Martir. In contrast to their southern
siblings, the northern gods are kinder and more respectful to
mortals. They also tend to take mortal names (for example, Grinf),
rather than titles translated from Godly Divina (for example, the
Loner God).

Ooka
. The God of Knives and Shadow.
Aquarian name: Ooka.

Queen Hanarova
. The katabans wife
of King Malock and mother of Princess Raya Mana. Like Malock, she
was a major character in the
Prince
Malock World
(http://www.timothylcerepaka.com/prince-malock-world/) novels.
While not a bad person, she has a fierce rivalry with Jenur Takren
that started in their youth and continues to this day.

Rock Isle
. The most secure prison
in the Northern Isles. Home to many of the most dangerous criminals
in the Northern Isles.

Silver spoon
. A slang term, common
in the Northern Isles, usually applied to princesses, especially
spoiled or bratty ones. The male equivalent is gold blood and the
terms come from the folk song
Princess Silver Spoon and Prince
Gold Blood.

Skimif
. The previous God of Martir.
He was once an aquarian farmer who was chosen by the Powers to
announce their return to Martir back in the
Prince
Malock World
(http://www.timothylcerepaka.com/prince-malock-world/) series. The
Powers eventually made him into the God of Martir, but he was
killed by Uron thirty years after his ascension.

Southern Pantheon
. The gods who
rule the southern half of Martir. In contrast to their northern
siblings, they hate mortals and see them as no different than any
other kind of animal. They tend to be more vicious and animalistic
and don't understand humans as well as their northern siblings
do.

The Almighty Ones
. A group of four
beings who live in the Spirit Lands and are responsible for judging
and guiding the spirits of the dead. Originally consisted of the
Dark Lady, the Arbiter, the Great Snake, and the Mysterious One
before the Arbiter and the Great Snake were killed. They are far
more powerful than the gods, but typically do not directly
interfere with the physical realm, preferring to focus instead on
the Spirit Lands where they rule.

The Dividing Line
. The exact line
that divides the northern and southern sides of Martir. This line
can be crossed by any god or mortal, but if a southern god crosses
it, then this god cannot kill any mortals on the northern side.

The gods of Martir
. Super-powerful
and immortal beings who each control a particular domain of Martir,
such as the elements or even abstract concepts. The gods used to be
one united force, but after the Godly War, they were separated into
the Northern Pantheon and the Southern Pantheon and have remained
that way ever since.

The Godly War
. An ancient conflict
that took place shortly after the creation of Martir eons ago. The
War started over a disagreement between the gods over how to treat
mortals. Half of them wished to use mortals for sport and food,
while the other half wanted to have them as worshipers and
followers. The two sides waged a war that killed many gods and
countless mortals before the Powers stepped in, ended the conflict,
and wrote up the Treaty to govern relations between the two
sides.

The Ghostly God
. The God of Ghosts
and Mist. A southern god. Highly intelligent, but cruel and
antisocial. Has an intense fascination with studying the dead and
where ghosts go after their bodies die.

The Mechanical Goddess
. The Goddess
of Machines. A southern goddess. She is the creator of the
automatons. Queen Hanarova served her in her youth.

The Mysterious One
. One of the
Almighty Ones. Originally pretended to be the mythical God of
Mystery and Magic before revealing his true identity at the end of
the
Mages of
Martir
(http://www.timothylcerepaka.com/mages-of-martir/) series. Strange
and enigmatic, he nonetheless cares about Martir and does what he
can to help protect it.

The Powers
. A group of six powerful
and ancient entities who created Martir, the gods, humanity, and
everything else within Martir. Their exact nature is a mystery, but
it is known that they are currently creating other worlds beyond
the Void. They have only visited Martir once since creating the
world but otherwise are not actively involved in the world's
day-to-day functions, which are instead regulated by the gods
themselves.

The Spirit Lands
. A land where all
spirits go when they die and where they are judged by the
Mysterious One for their deeds in life. Those who are judged as
righteous go beyond the Gates to rest eternally, while the ones
judged wicked are banished to the Unknown to be tortured
forever.

The Thief's Way
. A magical
discipline generally practiced by followers of the late Hollech,
the former God of Deception, Thieves, and Horses. Practitioners of
the Thief's Way can travel through shadow and also detach body
parts and have them emerge from the shadows to attack someone or
steal from them. Most practitioners of the Thief's Way are scorned
by their fellow mages and generally treated as criminals even if
they do not actually commit any crimes.

The Treaty
. A document that governs
relations between the Northern and Southern Pantheons, written by
the Powers themselves.

The Void
. A powerful and evil force
that exists beyond the edge of Martir. Its sole purpose is to
destroy and devour everything that exists. While the Void does not
technically have a gender, it is usually referred to with female
pronouns.

Tinkar
. The God of Fate and Time.
One of the oldest gods and a northern god. Aquarian name:
Seyar.

Uron
. A powerful being who existed
in the world before Martir, where he was a bitter scientist who was
hated by everyone. He allowed the Almighty One known as the Great
Snake to possess him so he could get back at his people, but due to
a series of unforeseen events, Uron and the Great Snake ended up
banished to the physical realm without a body for centuries. After
Uron got a body, he then attempted to destroy Martir, but was
ultimately destroyed by Braim Kotogs and now no longer exists as a
spiritual or physical being.

World's End
. Also known as the
Throne of the Gods. The final island in the southern seas and home
to most of the katabans on Martir.

***

Timothy L. Cerepaka writes fantasy as an
indie author. He is the author of the Prince Malock World fantasy
novels, the Mages of Martir fantasy novels, and the Two Worlds
science-fantasy series. He lives in Texas.

Find out more at his
website
(http://www.timothylcerepaka.com/). You can also Like his Facebook
page
here
(https://www.facebook.com/timothylcerepaka/timeline) or follow him
on Twitter at
@TimothyCerepaka
(https://twitter.com/timothycerepaka).

***

I would like to thank my uncle, James
Wilhite, for helping me get this manuscript into publishable shape.
I'd also like to thank the rest of my family for supporting me
while I wrote this novel. You guys rock.

***