leh lehizdayen — “Fuck you.” (to a man)
nið, niðing —Gothic, anathema, evil, malice, cowardly, unmanly, accursed.
nitzen – A Newton of force
ollamaliztli — Nahautl ball game
Paredes’ disease — Parkinson’s
perfututum — Latin, literally, “fucked out.”
photogram —coined word that describes a device that plays music encoded in light on crystalline storage discs.
Póg mo thóin — Gallic, “kiss my ass.”
rihtære scale — Richter scale
Sangua Foederis — Latin, Blood Pact
seiðr — Gothic, magic
sennin — Nipponese, immortal person, transcendent, mage, spirit, sage, hermit
shtoyut — Hebrew, Bullshit, crap, nonsense
thaum — Unit measuring magical energy, equivalent to wex
Tholberg coil — Tesla coil
Tlatoani — Nahautl, emperor of Nahautl
uisce beatha — Gallic, whiskey
wex — A watt of power.
ya ben shel zona. — Hebrew, “You son of a bitch.”
Air travel
Hatasahl Air — Judean airline, chemically-fueled jets.
Hellene Air — Hellene airline, chemically-fueled jets
Alroma — Roman state airline, ley-powered.
Qin Air — Quin state airline, ley-powered.
Motorcar brands
Judean:
Tsunams and Mehymans. All are electrically-powered.
Nipponese:
Kusabanas and Takas. Ley or electrical power, depending on market demand.
Hellene:
Arma, Aloga, and Epibintores. All luxury-brand vehicles, entirely ley-powered.
Weapons
Aphek 5 assault rifle
Velserk (Colt) .45 caliber pistol, which holds 6 rounds when fully loaded.
Vheva (Cobra) 9mm.
Legion organization and ranks
All levy forces, regardless of their province of origin, use Legion ranks.
Legion
1280 men. Commanded by Legion Legate, or legatus.
Tribuni angusticlavii – Tribune of the soldiers. A soldier who ranks above a centurion, but below the legate. (This is Sigrun’s rank, when she serves in the Legion actively.) These are officers, usually career military, and their rank gives them a fair degree of latitude. Many of them handle paperwork, but others are used to cut through paperwork, at the discretion of their legate.
Primus pilus centurion — Commanding centurion of the first century, first cohort and the senior-most centurion of the entire legion.
Cohort
4 centuries 320 men each, roughly; 4 cohorts per legion
Pilus prior centurion commands a cohort.
Century
80 men (16 centuries per legion;)
Primi ordines command a century.
Manciple
40 men.
Rank centurion.
Commands a manciple.
Optio
(A junior lieutenant, essentially. This is Adam’s first rank.) An optio commands 20 men, or half a manicple.
Hasta
Lowest enlisted rank.
Appendix V: Bind-Runes and Other Symbols
During the writing of the text, I only used dates and simple lines to break between different characters’ points of view. On viewing the text on a Kindle screen, I rapidly decided that this system did not allow the reader’s eye enough of a break from the wall of text on any given page. As such, I began to develop bind-runes for most of the major characters. A bind-rune is a combination of Norse runes, taking into account their symbolic values, and arranging them into a (hopefully) symmetrical and aesthetically pleasing configuration. Bind-runes were thought to be magical (much in the way that all early writing was considered magical by the largely-illiterate societies in which each system originated), and also served as markers of personal ownership. Early examples include the Valknut (symbol of Odin) and the Aegishjalmur (or helm of awe, which sticklers may consider more of a stave than a bind-rune).
Of course, not every character comes from a culture that would find the runes at all congenial, so I began adapting the system to include cuneiform for the Chaldean Magi characters, Japanese kanji for applicable characters, astronomical and alchemical signs where applicable to Roman gods, and so on. Not every point-of-view (POV) character has a symbol. Some characters only have a paragraph or so to themselves, so they did not receive one. Some characters do not have POVs, but I consider so important to the narrative, that they receive a bind-rune or other marker, anyway.
This table may provide spoilers for later books, so read it at your own risk.
Adam
Apollo
Baal-Hamon
Raidho, journey, leadership;
Manaz, mankind, man;
Tiwaz, justice and law;
Gebo, sacrifice;
Othala, ancestral power or inheritance
Astronomical sign for the sun
Two traditional symbols for Baal-Hamon, commingled
Brandr
Cernunnos
Drust and Sadb
Tiwaz, war;
Jera, patience;
Thurisaz, masculine vigor;
Algiz, protection
Traditionally, the horned god
Fehu, fertility; Nauthiz, suffering
Ehecatl
Erida
Freya
Quetzalcoatl, the feathered serpent as Ouroboros, and as the sun.
Sag sign in cuneiform, symbol of the Magi “head” or “wisdom”
Fehu; richness, abundance, female generativity
Frittigil
Hecate
Hel
Berkano, rebirth and renewal; Gebo, sacrifice
Othala, ancestral power; Inguz, isolation; Kenaz, knowledge/magic
Triple ring; adapted from “triple moon” symbol for triune goddesses.
Dark of the moon
Illa’zhi
Ima
Inghean
Storm god or demon, cuneiform
Hagaliz, transformation; Tiwaz, war; Fehu, richness; Kenaz; knowledge
Fehu, femininity and fertility, wealth, abundance
Inti
Isis
Jormangand
Sacrificed Sun
Isis knot
Serpent coiled around the World-Tree (or Tree of Life)
Juno
Jupiter
Kanmi
Traditional symbol for Juno
Traditional and astronomical sign for Jupiter
Algiz, protection or divine power;
Tiwaz, war;
Gebo, sacrifice;
Dagaz, enlightenment
Lassair
Latirian
Livorus
Fehu, abundance and fertility; Berkano, rebirth and renewal;
Gebo, sacrifice
Fehu, fertility; Inguz, isolation to create power
Libra; scales, law-giver
Loki
Maccis
Mamaquilla
Ihwaz, the yew tree, axis of the world tree; Nauthiz, suffering
Othala, ancestral power; Ehwaz, trust;
Algiz, protection;
Kenaz, magic or knowledge
Inti eclipsed, and the moon weeps for the lost sun.
Mars
Masako
Mercury
Astronomical and traditional symbol for Mars
Fire, literally, in Japanese.
Traditional astronomical sign for Mercury
Minori
Morrigan
Neptune
The rising sun, in Japanese.
Knotwork raven.
Trident; astronomical sign for Neptune
Niðhoggr
Njord
Odin
Jera, patience and endurance;
Kenaz, knowledge;
Othala, ancestral power;
Inguz, isolation and masculine power;<
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Gebo, sacrifice
Boat, traditional symbol
The Valknut; knot of dead warriors. Symbol of Odin’s power over fate, men’s minds, and death.
Orcus
Pluto
Prometheus
Traditional and astronomical sign for Orcus
Astronomical sign for Jupiter
The infinite chain of time
Reginleif
Rig
Saraid
Kenaz, knowledge;
Thurisaz, chaos and strife;
1x Inguz, isolation to create internal growth.
Kenaz, magic/illusion;
Ehwaz, trust;
Tiwaz, war/law
Berkano, rebirth and renewal;
Sowilo (in the negative space between the Berkano runes); sunlight, life, guidance;
6 Kenaz, knowledge
Sekhmet
Set
Sigrun
Lion-headed goddess with crown and serpent, traditional
Set beast. Traditional symbol
Tiwaz, justice;
Gebo, sacrifice;
Othala, ancestral power;
Kenaz, knowledge
Solinus
Sophia
Taranis
Sowilo, sun and generativity
Perthro, fate;
Isa, ice, stagnation;
Algiz, divine connection
Lightning bolt
Thor
Trennus
Tyr
Thurizas. A simple variation on Thor’s hammer
Gebo, sacrifice;
Kenaz, knowledge;
Inguz, isolation and male power;
Thurisaz; masc. vigor/war; Dagaz; awakening or renewal
Tiwaz, justice and war
Venus
Vesta
Vidarr
Traditional and astronomical sign for Venus.
Traditional symbol for Vesta/Hestia.
Nauthiz, suffering; Raidho, leadership; Tiwaz, war; Algiz, protection; Thurisaz, masculine power
Zaya
Reed, stylus “Gi” in cuneiform
The Goddess Denied (The Saga of Edda-Earth Book 2) Page 138