by Melanie Rawn
Mage Globe. Controlled fire of varying size according to the power and wishes of the user; the first magic taught Novices to judge strength and teach discipline. Scholars and Healers use Globes for simple illumination and as magical notebooks. Among Warriors, they are a challenge to combat; Mageborns fight with Globes as well as with swords. Color indicates training, sometimes power, and often emotional state. A Senior Mage’s Globe is nearly white.
Mage Guardians. Founded by Amaryllis Flynn. Forbidden to hold government office of any kind.
Organization:
Regimentals: black clothes and cloak, silver collar pins, sash of office.
Captal—emblems are Sparrow (for St. Rilla) and Candle (for St. Miryenne), silver sash; presides over Council of Senior Mages*.
Novice Master—two Sparrows, black-and-silver sash.
Prentice Master—Sparrow and Candle, black-and-silver sash.
Guardmaster—Candle and Sparrow, black-and-silver sash.
Master Healer—Herb Sprig and Candle, green-and-silver sash.
Archivist—Mage Globe and Candle, gray-and-silver sash; responsible for the Library and the Lists (official record of all Mage Guardians).
First Sword—Sword and Candle, red-and-silver sash; commander of Captal’s Warders.
Captal’s Warders—Sword and Candle, red-and-black sash; elite corps of 50 Warriors whose sole duty is to protect the Captal.
Magic, Rules of. First: Harm nothing. Second (according to Gorynel Desse): Be subtle.
Maidil the Betrayer, Saint. Patron of New Lovers, Fools. Sigil: Mask.
Maurget Quickfingers, Saint. Patron of Jewelers, Gemcutters, Artists, Beggars, Tax Collectors, Politicians. Sigil: Pen and Purse.
Miramili the Summoner, Saint. Patron of Bells, Weddings. Sigil: Miramili’s Bells.
Miryenne the Guardian, Saint. Patron of Light, Candles, Magic, Mage Guardians. Sigil: Lighted Candle.
Mittru Bluehair, Saint. Patron of Rivers. Sigil: Sheaf of Reeds.
Money. Decimal coinage system.
10 copper cutpieces=1 silver eagle
100 copper cutpieces=10 silver eagles=1 gold eagle
1000 copper cutpieces=100 silver eagles=10 gold eagles
Niya the Seamstress, Saint. Patron of Tailors. Sigil: Scissors. Removed from official calendar.
Pierga Cleverhand, Saint. Patron of Thieves, Condemned Prisoners, Divorced Husbands. Sigil: Broken Lock.
Rilla the Guide, Saint. Patron of Travelers, Coachmen, the Blind, Mage Guardians. Sigil: White Sparrow.
Ryka. Island province.
Ryka Court. Capital of Lenfell.
Ryka Legion. Elite corps of 500 Council Guards under direct command of First Councillor.
Saints. Of the 386 Saints in Lenfell’s hagiography—one for each day of the year—34 are celebrated in the Calendar (q.v.). Their origins are more legend than fact, and most of the legends have been forgotten but for a tradition of patronage. Three examples illustrate.
Pierga Cleverhand is a creation of the lightfingered, who, on capture, cried “Pierga protect me!” to warn colleagues. A “life” was invented for her, embroidered as whimsy or inspiration dictated; not the most noble in the Calendar, but certainly among the most colorful. Her sigil is a Broken Lock. The reason for her patronage of divorced husbands is unknown.
Delilah was a Warrior Mage of ca. 375–145 who earned her title “The Dancer” by her grace at swordplay. Her patronage includes athletes, soldiers, and, to the amusement of Mage Guardians, the needle (she never set finger to one in her life). Her feast is celebrated with sword dances and gifts of iron or steel. Her sigils are Crossed Swords or Crossed Needles.
The origin of Lirance Cloudchaser and the symbolism of her Tower have been completely forgotten.
Nine Saints in the Calendar are male: Agvir, Chevasto, Garony, Geridon, Gorynel, Kiy, Lusir, Tamas, and Telomar.
Personal names are always variants on the name of a Saint—as Beth, Lizzy, Bethany, Elise, Ilsa, and Isabel (among dozens) are versions of Elizabeth.
Seinshir. Province of many islands; largest is home to Malerris Castle.
Shellinkroth. Province. Capital: Havenport.
Sheve. Province. Capital: Roseguard.
Sheve Dark. Pine forest stretching across North Lenfell; largely unexplored.
Shonne Dreamdealer, Saint. Patron of Shrines and Pilgrims. Sigil: Triangle. Removed from official calendar.
Sirrala the Virgin, Saint. Patron of Flowers, Gemstones, Virgin Girls. Sigil: Flower Crown.
Steen Swordsworn, Saint. Patron of Male Warriors. Sigil: Leather Gauntlet. Removed from official calendar.
Tamas the Mapmaker, Saint. Patron of Sailors. Sigils: Anchor and Rope; Sextant.
Telomar the Patient, Saint. Patron of Stonemasons and Miners. Sigil: Hammer and Chisel.
Tiers. Categorization of families by incidence of defects (Bloods are “clean”) instituted after The Waste War. Names survive only in direct female line. Heraldry designates status: each Name has two colors; Bloods and the First and Second Tiers also use a sigil (in gold for Bloods, silver for Firsts, copper for Seconds).
Tillinshir. Province. Capital: Shainkroth.
Time
Hour: 100 minutes.
Day: 15 hours. Half-Fifth corresponds roughly to 7:30 a.m.;
Tenth is about 3:00 p.m.; Thirteenth is around 8:00 p.m.
Week: 10 or 11 days. Begins with each full moon.
Year: 386 days; 36 weeks plus one Wraithenday.
Tirreiz the Canny, Saint. Patron of Merchants, Money, Bankers. Sigil: Coins.
Velenne the Bard, Saint. Patron of Music, Bards, Actors, Poets. Sigil: Lute.
Velireon The Provider, Saint. Patron of the Kitchen, Cooks, Tinkers, Farmers. Sigils: Wheatsheaf, Crossed Spoons.
Venkelos the Judge, Saint. Patron of Death and Dying, the Wraithenday. Sigil: Halved Circle.
Viranka the Gray-Eyed, Saint. Patron of Rain, Water. Sigil: Well.
War, Mageborn. Fought from 481–489 over intentional breeding of Mageborns, ending when it was discovered that in selectively bred children, birth defects appeared at an alarming rate.
War of the Tiers. Planetwide conflict over inequities in societal classifications fought from 306–312. The Tier system remained intact.
War, The Waste. Military and magical conflict between Lords of Malerris and Mage Guardians over establishment of a thaumatocracy. Immediate cause was the near-simultaneous assassinations of Guardmaster and Third Lord of Malerris; the assassins were never identified. Though fought in many Shirs, the final magical onslaught was in The Waste, which gave its name to the whole war. Casualties among the Malerrisi reached 81%; among Mage Guardians, 68%; among the general population, 51%. Worldwide magical pollution spread by wind and water caused high rates of infertility, miscarriage, stillbirth, infant mortality, and birth defects for many Generations. Widespread societal upheaval and near-total anarchy in some areas resulted in the Lost Age (60–70 years) before the First Census.
Waste, The. Province. Capital: Renig.
Web. A family’s holdings of property and mercantile interests. In most cases each branch’s First Daughter oversees a small Web that may or may not link into her Name’s larger Web. Some are planet-wide; most are regional.
Wraith. A dead person’s spirit. Some Wraiths keep politely to themselves. Some visit the living for the usual ghostly reasons: assistance, mischief, vengeance, malevolence, or simple yearning to be with those loved in life. They are said to congregate in the Wraithenwood, but have been known to appear wherever they please. Folklore has it that particularly angry Wraiths dwell in the Dead White Forest, a portion of the Wraithen Mountains destroyed in The Waste War.
Wraithenbeast. Magical creature unleashed by the Wild Magic of The Waste War. Although incorporeal, Wraithenbeasts are so terrifying that mere sight of one is lethal. Varieties are limited only by the imaginati
on of their long-dead creators. They are uniformly hideous.
Wraithenbeast Incursion. The first occurred in 448–458, the second in 513–518. Monsters emerged to terrorize North Lenfell and were driven back only by Mageborns—in the former instance by Mage Guardians and Lords of Malerris working together, but in the latter by Guardians alone.
Wraithen Mountains. Domain of Wraithenbeasts.
Wraithenwood. Domain of Wraiths.
CALENDAR OF SAINTS
Week
1 First Moon Lirance Cloudchaser
2 Shepherds Moon Lusine and Lusir the Twins
3 Lady Moon Gelenis First Daughter
4 Ilsevet’s Moon Ilsevet Waterborn
5 Spring Moon Equinox
6 Seeker’s Moon Alilen the Seeker
7 Lovers Moon Imili the Joyous
8 Green Bells Miramili the Summoner
9 First Flowers Sirrala the Virgin
10 Thieves Moon Pierga Cleverhand
11 Hearthfire Velireon the Provider
12 Maiden Moon Maidil the Betrayer
13 Ascension Deiket Snowhair
14 Midsummer Moon Solstice
15 Healers Moon Feleris the Healer
16 Long Sun Mittru Bluehair
17 Allflower Jeymian Gentlehand
18 Sailors Moon Tamas the Mapmaker
19 Rosebloom Geridon the Stallion
20 Hunt Fielto the Finder
21 Drygrass Garony the Righteous
22 Wildfire Caitiri the Fiery-Eyed
23 Autumn Moon Equinox
24 Applefall Agvir the Silent
25 Harvest Kiy the Forgetful
26 Wolfkill Delilah the Dancer
27 Water Moon Viranka the Gray-Eyed
28 First Frost Tirreiz the Canny
29 Diamond Mirror Maurget Quickfingers
30 Snow Sparrow Rilla the Guide
31 Candleweek Miryenne the Guardian
32 Midwinter Moon Solstice
33 Nettle-and-Thorn Gorynel the Compassionate
34 Neversun Velenne the Bard
35 Weavers Moon Chevasto the Weaver
36 Last Moon Telomar the Patient
— Wraithenday Venkelos the Judge
HOW TO SAY IT
(a guide for purists)
Vowels
a
as in cat (Dalakard, Affe)
ai; ay; ei; ey
as in bay (Cailet; Trayos; Feiran; Neyos)
au
as in laurel (Auvry, Maurgen)
e
as in seven (Gelenis); exception is Stene as in theme
i
as in tin (Ilsevet); sometimes as in magazine (Caitiri, Rosvenir, Falundir, Miryenne); sometimes as in while (Alilen, Delilah)
ia
as in median (Jeymian, Garvedian)
ie
as in sentries (Pierga); exceptions are Dalien (Dal-ee-en) and Fielto (Fee-el-toe)
o
usually as in more (Gorynel); sometimes as in bonny (Garony, Geridon); as an ending is always long (see Fielto above)
u
as in furnace (Dombur); sometimes as in usual (Mittru)
y
usually as in tin (Gorynel); sometimes as in navy (Garony, Miryenne)
Further helpful hints
g is always hard, as in get
shir—as in shirred eggs
Kiy is one syllable, rhymes with eye
All double-consonant names (Affe, Desse, Witte, etc.) are single-syllable except for Bekke, Vedde, and Vekke, which add a final long e (Bek-ee).
AUTHOR’S NOTE
The real Double Spiral Stair, designed by Leonardo da Vinci for Francois I, can be found at the remarkable chateau of Chambord in the Loire Valley, France.
Some of you will have noticed that I named a starship after my grandmother. When she was seven years old, her family relocated from Missouri to Colorado—by covered wagon. It seemed appropriate to give her name to a pioneers’ starship. . . .
The second volume of Exiles is called The Mageborn Traitor and will be followed by the concluding book, The Captal’s Tower.
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