The Skyfather
The Skyfather is a sky god of the Plainsmen
Auxiliaries of the Legions
A legion consists of two arms: the ruhuimur dragons and the auxiliaries; the auxiliaries are mounted on aquar and are recruited from among the barbarians surrounding that Guarded Land
The Forbidden Garden
The Forbidden Garden is another name for the Yden that extends from the base of the Pillar of Heaven in Osrakum
Ichor
Ichor is the fiery substance that runs as blood in the veins of the Gods. The Chosen believe that through the ritual of an Apotheosis, the blood of a God Emperor is transmuted into ichor, the purity of which They pass on to their offspring. The Chosen minutely calculate and tabulate how much ichor burns in their blood because this is the basis on which they determine status
Seraph and Seraphim
The terms ‘Seraph’ and ‘Seraphim’ are honorifics that translate the Quyan words ‘nuhma’ and ‘nuhmá’, that equate to ‘angel’, or ‘angelic being’—terms that are used to refer to the Chosen to reflect their semi-divine status
The Sacred Wall
The high mountain wall of the crater of Osrakum is called by the Chosen the Sacred Wall. It separates their Hidden Land from the Outer World. The Sacred Wall is breached only in one place, by the Canyon of the Three Gates
Ferngardens, Fernroot and Fiddleheads
Ferngardens are the areas within the ditches of a Plainsman koppie that are given over to wild ferns, both for the pasturage of aquar, and the harvesting of starchy fernroot and the delicate new fern leaves, fiddleheads
Forbidden Houses
A forbidden house is a secure facility in which Chosen women are sequestered. Access to them is controlled by ammonites and subject to the codicils of the Law-that-must-be-obeyed. The rationale for these systems is the priority of knowing with absolute certainty the parentage of a Chosen child