Temple Mount. The First, like all priestesses of the Order, gave up her name on taking her vows.
Niah of Nor once held this office.
FIVE FAMILIES, The First: the leading families of Tencendor, led, in turn, by Prince
Askam of the West, King Zared of the North, Prince Yllgaine of Nor, Chief Sa‘Domai of the
Ravensbund and FreeFall SunSoar, Talon of the Icarii. The delicate balance between these
families was greatly upset when Zared seized the throne of Achar.
FLULIA: one of the nine Icarii Star Gods, Flulia is the Goddess of Water.
FLURIA, River: a minor river that flows through Aldeni into the River Nordra.
FORESTFLIGHT EVERSOAR: a member of the Lake Guard.
FORTHEART: one of the Alaunt, and mate to Sicarius.
FORTRESS RANGES: the mountains that run down Achar‘s eastern boundary from the
Icescarp Alps to the Widowmaker Sea.
FREEFALL, Talon: son of BrightFeather and RavenCrest SunSoar, husband of
EvenSong SunSoar. They have no children.
FROISSON: a unit commander in Caelum‘s force.
GAPFEATHER: a member of the Lake Guard.
GATEKEEPER, The: the Keeper of the Gate of Death in the UnderWorld and mother of
Zeherah. Her task is to keep tally of the souls who pass through the Gate. She is one of the
Lesser immortals.
GERLIEN: a soldier under Zared‘s command.
GHEMT: a game played with sticks and dice in a circle of diamond-shaped spaces.
GOLDMAN, Jannymire: Master of the Guilds of Carlon. One of the most powerful
non-noblemen in Tencendor.
GORGRAEL: the Destroyer, half-brother to Axis, sharing the same father, StarDrifter.
Axis defeated him in a titanic struggle for control of Tencendor forty years before current events.
GORKENFORT: a major fort situated in Gorken Pass in northern Ichtar.
GORKEN PASS: the narrow pass sixty leagues long that provides the only way from
Ravensbund into Ichtar. It is bounded by the Icescarp Alps and the River Andakilsa.
GRAIL LAKE, The: a massive lake at the lower reaches of the River Nordra. On its
shores are Carlon and the tower of Spiredore.
GRAWEN: a captain in Zared‘s army.
GREATER, The: the nine Star Gods.
GREMEN: a guard in Carlon.
GRISTLECREST SWEPTNEST: an Icarii inhabitant of the Minaret Peaks.
GRYPHON: a legendary flying creature of Tencendor, intelligent, vicious and
courageous. Gorgrael recreated them to defeat Axis, but they were all destroyed by Azhure.
GUNDEALGA FORD: a wide shallow ford on the Nordra, just south of the Urqhart
Hills.
GUSTUS: Captain of Zared‘s militia.
GWENDYLYR: wife of Duke Theod of Aldeni, and mother of their twin sons.
HAGEN: once a Plough-Keeper in the (now destroyed) village of Smyrton who was
husband to Niah. He was accidentally killed by Azhure some forty-three years ago.
HANDSPAN: see ‗Distances‘.
HEAVORAND, Bransom: a merchant from Carlon.
HERME, Earl of Avonsdale: son of Earl Jorge, mentor of Duke Theod of Aldeni and
friend to King Zared.
HERVITIUS: a master of a merchantman.
HORNED ONES: the almost divine and most sacred members of the Avar race. They
live in the Sacred Grove.
HSINGARD: a ruined town situated in central Ichtar.
HURST, Karl: a wool trader from Carlon.
ICARII, The: a race of winged people. They are sometimes referred to as the People of
the Wing.
ICEBEAR COAST: the hundred-league long coast that stretches from the DeadWood
Forest in north-western Ravensbund to the frozen Tundra above the Avarinheim. It is very
remote, and very beautiful.
ICESCARP ALPS, The: the great mountain range that stretches across most of northern
Achar.
ICESCARP BARREN: a desolate tract of land situated in northern Ichtar between the
Icescarp Alps and the Urqhart Hills.
ICEWORMS: massive worms of ice and snow created by Gorgrael.
ICHTAR, Dukes of: once cruel lords of Ichtar, the line died with Borneheld.
ICHTAR, The Province of: the largest and richest of the provinces of Achar. Ichtar
derives its wealth from its extensive grazing herds and from its mineral and precious gem
deposits. Ruled by Zared, now also King of the Acharites.
ICHTAR, River: a minor river that flows through Ichtar into the River Azle.
ILFRACOOMBE: the manor house of the Earl of Skarabost, the home where Faraday
grew up.
INISCUE, Mayor: Mayor of Severin.
ISABEAU: first wife of King Zared. She died in a hunting accident ten years before
current events.
ISFRAEL: Mage-King of the Avar. Son of Axis and Faraday.
ISLAND OF MIST AND MEMORY: one of the sacred sites of the Icarii people, once
known as Pirate‘s Nest. The Temple of the Stars and its complex are situated on a great plateau
on the island‘s southern coast.
JACK: senior among the Sentinels.
JARL: A pottery trader of Nor.
JASPAR: a lieutenant in Zared‘s force, loyal to Askam.
JERVOIS LANDING: the small town on Tailem Bend of the River Nordra. The gateway
into Ichtar.
JESSUP, Baron: a minor nobleman of Avonsdale.
JESTWING BLUEBACK: an Icarii male from the Minaret Peaks.
JOKAM: an Avar man, and leader of the StillPond Clan.
KASTALEON: one of the great Keeps of Achar, situated on the River Nordra in central
Achar. Approximately six months before the events of this book, it was blown up by Theod
under instructions from Zared, killing many thousands of Caelum‘s men.
KEEPS, The: the three great magical Keeps of Achar. See separate entries under
Spiredore, Sigholt, and Silent Woman Keep.
KILCKMAN, Bormot: a trader of Carlon.
KILLINGREW: a young commander in Zared‘s army.
LAKE GUARD, The: a militia composed entirely of the men and women who
SpikeFeather TrueSong rescued from Talon Spike when it was threatened by Gryphon. They
escaped via the waterways, and were changed by their experience. The Lake Guard is dedicated
to the service of the StarSon.
LAKE OF LIFE, The: one of the sacred and magical lakes of Tencendor. It sits at the
western end of the HoldHard Pass in the Urqhart Hills and cradles Sigholt.
LEAGH, Princess: sister to Askam, daughter of Belial and Cazna. Now wife of Zared and
Queen of Achar.
LEAGUE: see ‗Distances‘.
LESSER, The: a term given to creatures of such magic they approach god-like status.
MAGARIZ, Prince: husband to Rivkah, Axis‘ mother, and father to Zared. Now dead.
MAGIC: under the influence of the Seneschal all Artor-fearing Acharites feared and
hated the use of magic, although their fear is now as largely dead as the Seneschal.
MALFARI: the tuber that the Avar depend on to produce their bread.
MARRAT, Baron: Baron of Romsdale.
MAZE, The: a mysterious labyrinth underneath Grail Lake.
MAZE GATE, The: the wooden gate into the Maze. Its stone archway is covered with
hieroglyphics.
MEANTHRIN: a soldier in Zared‘s force.
MILITARY TERMS (for regular ground forces):
Squad: a small group of fighters, normally under forty and usually archers.
Unit: a group of one hundred men, either infantry, archers, pikemen, or cavalry.
Cohort: five units, so five hundred men.
See also ‗Wing‘ and ‗Crest‘ for the Icarii Strike Force.
MINARET PEAKS: the ancient name for the Bracken Ranges, named for the minarets of
the Icarii cities that spread over the entire mountain range.
MINSTRELSEA: the name Faraday gave to the forest she planted out below the
Avarinheim.
MONTHS: (northern hemisphere seasons apply)
Wolf-month: January Raven-month: February Hungry-month: March Thaw-month: April
Flower-month: May Rose-month: June Harvest-month: July Weed-month: August
DeadLeaf-month: September Bone-month: October Frost-month: November Snow-month:
December MOONWILDFLOWERS: extremely rare, delicate violet flowers that bloom only
under the full moon. Closely associated with Azhure.
MORNINGSTAR SUNSOAR: StarDrifter‘s mother and a powerful Enchanter in her own
right. She was murdered by WolfStar SunSoar.
MOT: one of the TimeKeeper Demons. Mot is the Demon of dawn and of hunger.
MOTHER, The: either the Avar name for Fernbrake Lake, or an all-embracing term for
nature which is sometimes personified as an immortal woman.
MURKLE BAY: a huge bay off the western coast of Tencendor.
MURKLE MOUNTAINS: a range of desolate mountains that run along the length of
Murkle Bay. Once extensively mined for opals, they are now abandoned.
MURMURWING: a young Icarii.
NARCIS: one of the nine Icarii Star Gods, Narcis is the God of the Sun.
NECKLET, The: a curious geological feature of Ravensbund.
NIAH: of the once baronial family of Nor. Mother to Azhure, Niah was seduced by
WolfStar SunSoar and murdered by Brother Hagen. Niah was the First Priestess of the Order of
the Stars. WolfStar promised her rebirth to be his lover for eternity, and her soul was born into
Zenith, youngest daughter of Axis and Azhure.
In Sinner, Niah and Zenith battled for control of her body and soul, with the result that
Zenith forced the Niah-soul into a child she was carrying (fathered by WolfStar), which she gave
premature birth to and then killed. WolfStar now carries the corpse of the Niah-infant about with
him.
NINE, The: see the ‗Star Gods‘. (‗The Nine‘ can also occasionally refer to the nine
Priestesses of the Order of the Stars.)
NOR: the southernmost of the provinces of Achar. The Nors people are far darker and
more exotic than the rest of the Acharites. Nor is controlled by Prince Yllgaine.
NORDEN: captain of the watch on Carlon‘s walls.