Prodigal Steelwielder (Seals of the Duelists Book 3)

by Jasmine Giacomo

  Bermudo dy Chixal: legendary Corona general, victor of a thousand demon battles, who rejected Queen Ranguela’s offer of marriage and was subsequently ordered to his doom at the hands of the sea pirate known as the Red Hound. Instead of dying, he found redemption and love in the arms of the sea witch, Erramela, cursed by the Red Hound at the moment of his death. Dy Chixal and Erramela built a kingdom of their own, forging what would grow to become the Corona

  Bhattara: god of the Bantayan. He lives in the sky and can see all things

  Bhattara na: “Bhattara wills”, an expression of acceptance or fatalism

  Bituin: a seerwine pitcher plant on the Academy campus, mature enough to produce raw seerwine sap. Bayan brought it from Pangusay as a gift when he arrived

  Blessed Ward of the Empire: a godchild of the emperor, representing a bestowment of favor and political alliance upon the child’s family. Kiwani was given this honor by the previous emperor, Hedrick

  Blood type: citizens of the Waarden empire have one of three different blood types: Waarden, Northern Common, and Southern Common, with Waarden blood being the dominant type, always manifesting in children with only one Waarden parent. A chanter’s healing crystal contains one drop of blood belonging to one of these three types, allowing the healing of anyone possessing that type of blood. Therefore, chanters always carry three crystals with them, one containing blood of each type

  Bloodcrown: the imperial crown of the Corona, fronted by a hollow golden sword into which the current ruler pours a portion of his blood to signify his willingness to sacrifice for his people

  Braam vander Broek: a minor noble who was potioneered for fighting an illegal duel on campus. Former member of Taban’s hex

  Caharta Valley: area west of Enchamanca, toward the Waarden Empire

  Calder Micarron: A Dunfarroghan from Marghebellen. Previously indentured to the Firedust Guild, he was injured in an accident that revealed his magical ability. His guildmaster took him to the nearest chanter, but the three-day journey left a permanent flame-shaped scar on Calder’s cheek. Because Calder is afraid of fire, and bonds his fear to his magic, he becomes a Flame Savant. He’s stationed at the duel den in Muggenhem following Bayan’s exile, and feels vastly out of place amongst the vacationing elite. He and Tala Salunga have become lovers

  Caolan, Lady: a noblewoman who washed out of the Duelist Academy for falling in love, and who has since become the most famous potioneer in the empire, catering to the whims of the nobility in Akkeraad

  Cassander: one of Philo’s Kheerzaal eunuch assistants

  Casts: various element-specific versions of the same spell. A duelist determines which cast of a spell is released by which element he or she invokes before performing the spell’s motions. For example: the Watercast of Stormwave releases a wave of water toward one’s tegen, while the Flamecast of Stormwave releases a fiery fog that spawns miniature flame tornadoes. A spell’s motion set must contain the sacred motion for a particular element in order for that spell to have a corresponding element cast

  Cavan: Head Duelist at the North Keenaght duel den in Renallen

  Cazan: a Corona term of endearment

  Centineles: members of the Corona’s imperial law enforcement

  Cetechupes: Corona citizens who have trained in the ancient Corona magics. They are controlled by Yl Senyecho himself as a segment of his armed forces

  Cetechupil: the study of ancient Corona magic, involving exacting formulae and learned focus. Unlike the innate magics of the Waarden Empire, anyone can be trained in the ways of cetechupil

  Chamerta Plains: an arid, flat region occupying the northwest portion of the Corona

  Chanter: one who possesses song magic, but not the ability to sing, due to injury, tone deafness, etc. Chanters can perform healing magic, which requires only toneless rhythmic sounds and a crystal containing a drop of blood matching the patient’s blood type. Because of their ability to heal wounds quickly, most chanters are assigned by the Temple of Ten Thousand Harmonies to duel dens across the empire. Others find employment in the private sector, or travel the High Ways as itinerants

  Chantery: headquarters on the Academy campus for all chanters assigned duties there. It lies in the center of the campus

  Chigulan: a small town on the eastern edge of the Corona

  Choral Hall: the center area on the Temple campus where the Full Choir assembles at the Temple. It is the lowest outdoor point on the grounds, and all sound created there carries perfectly throughout the bowl of the Temple and its walls

  Choralist: title for an advanced teacher at the Temple of Ten Thousand Harmonies. Members of the First Singer’s Octet must be choralists

  Corona: the empire to the east of the Waarden Empire. It is made up of several valios, or provinces, each considered a jewel in the emperor’s crown. Its citizens are called coronales

  Coronàl: adjective referring to anything of the Corona

  Coronàles: citizens of the Corona

  Cozenwar: a last-ditch push during the First Tuathi War, led by Warmaster Adrian de Hond, which turned the tide and enabled a Waarden victory

  Cresconio: owner of the government-sponsored traveling circus in which Bayan has found employment since his exile from the Waarden Empire

  Cricket: term used by eunuchs to refer to other eunuchs, in reference to their high voices

  Dakila: Bayan’s sparring partner, defense instructor, and friend. His Waarden uncle by marriage was Bayan’s school teacher

  Danatu: title of the former Balanganese king. Fearing a civil war amongst his sons after his impending death, the Danatu brokered a deal with Emperor Hedrick of the Waarden Empire to absorb Balanganam into his many lands and maintain peace amongst his sons and his people

  Datu Lualhati: Bayan’s father, a successful Balanganese farmer

  Den chanter: a chanter assigned to a duel den

  Diantha: one of Doc Theo’s campus chanters. She becomes Head Chanter after Doc Theo’s untimely departure

  Diogenes Essendorp (Odjin): a former member of Bayan’s hex. He was potioneered because he lost a leg. He makes potions at a tiny booth in Yewakma, but secretly runs the Potioneers Savant using ancient knowledge Bayan discovered in a lost book on Duelism

  Diwata Lualhati: one of Bayan’s sisters, aged twelve

  Doc Theo: see Theo Willemsen

  Dose: to imbibe a potion

  Dosing: consuming potions in an addictive fashion

  Duel den: a dueling arena and living quarters and occupied by several duelists. Duel dens are housed within major cities or placed strategically amongst several smaller towns, so that all imperial citizens have access to duelism mediation

  Duelist: a caster of elemental magic, trained at the Duelist Academy, in service for life to the empire. Duelists serve the people during peace time by battling to determine the outcome of civil conflicts, and fight the empire’s enemies in times of war. Duelists hold high status no matter their cultural origin, but they are bound to a lifetime of magical service and cannot abandon their post without serious consequences

  Duelist Academy: a campus for training duelists to master their elemental magic, hidden amongst the tunnels and valleys of a limestone mountain in the south of Helderaard. Previous valley floor iterations were sacked during various wars

  Duelist Savant: a rare class of duelist who is unable to achieve a perfectly emotionless Void and bonds his or her magic to a particular emotion instead. Since emotion makes magic strong and wild, most Savants injure or kill themselves or someone else before achieving perfect control over their emotional magic. Survivors are often stripped of their magic for everyone’s safety. Savants with emotions that favor a particular elements are referred to by that elemental title: Flame Savant, Earth Savant, etc

  Dunfarroghan: a pragmatic, easily adaptable culture, descended from Tuathi who settled on conquered Waarden lands. The Dunfarroghan live in Marghebellen and Gallenglaas, as well as the western part of Helderaard and the southern stretch of Kallicho
n. They’re characterized by either pale or black hair, light eyes, and a tendency to wring everything they can out of any deal

  Eirene: a noblewoman serving at the Kheerzaal, skilled in detecting forged coins

  Eithne Mikellen: the Academy’s Earth Instructor, she holds the rank of Avatar Duelist

  Elemental Duelist: the first rank a student can achieve at the Duelist Academy, accomplished by most of the students in each class. Elemental Duelists can control all six elements of their magic, bending it to their will with the perfected use of the six sacred motions, which they use to cast their spells

  Elements: Flame, Water, Wood, Air, Earth and Shock

  Enchalla: a city in Valio Ouachasta, which is forbidden to use magic and produces large quantities of steel from its smeltery

  Enchamanca: the City of Rapture, capital city of the Corona and home of the Alchazzar

  Erinando dyly Gonsala: special envoy from Yl Senyecho to His Imperial Majesty Jaap voorde Helderaard. His Corona title is Conecho Uniqo dyl Reyo Ochidala

  Erramela: a sea witch in Corona legend. The Red Hound sacrificed himself to curse her into a mortal form that could never touch the sea again. In despair, she saw the doomed General Bermudo dy Chixal approaching to wage futile battle with the now-dead pirate and his armada, and she fell in love with him, and he with her. Together, they founded a kingdom that would eventually become the Corona

  Eward Raalgat: once a shy Waarden boy in Bayan’s hex, Eward has been forced to come into his own by Bayan’s exile. Assigned to a duel den in Renallen, Eward endures false rumors spawned by a loyalist imperial faction of government

  Fastamar: God of Storms, a god of the Corona

  Feast of Many Harvests: a late autumn festival celebrating the end of the fertile season

  Feast of Tuq: the day on the old Aklaa calendar that marks the beginning of the spring season, roughly corresponding to Low Spring on the official Waarden calendar

  Femke: Empress of the Waarden, wife to Emperor Jaap, mother of Juriaan and Sebastiaan

  Firedust: the mysterious ingredients that form the colorful, noisy explosions of fireworks. Also the name of Calder’s Flame avatar

  Firedust Guild: a licensed guild that uses the secret knowledge of exploding powder to entertain audiences during feasts, festivals and holidays

  First Singer: title for the singer in charge of the Temple of Ten Thousand Harmonies. His or her duties include overseeing the training of all singer students, managing the Temple’s outposts and their saleable goods, assigning chanters’ duties across the empire, and deciding when and for which purposes the magic of the Full Choir will be bestowed

  First Tuathi War: 803-960 IC, during which the Tuathi captured Marghebellen, Gallenglaas and much of Helderaard, where they destroyed the Duelist Academy’s first, loosely organized campus. The Waarden duelists finally brought the war to a close when they discovered a previously unknown magical technique that gave Elementalists a distinct advantage over anima casters in battle. The shift in power forced the Tuathi to sue for peace and settle across their captured lands or flee across the Maam Ardcath

  Full Choir: an outdoor assembly of every singer in the Temple of Ten Thousand Harmonies. Due to the perfect acoustics in the bowl-shaped Temple grounds, the magical potential of songs performed by the Full Choir is nearly limitless, and can stretch for thousands of miles

  Gael: one of Philo’s Kheerzaal assistants, a Dunfarroghan eunuch

  Gaarana: the Dancing Duelist, master of a lost duelism style

  Gallenglaas Day: a Waarden holiday in late winter, celebrating the province’s return to imperial rule in 1691 IC after being in the hands of the Tuathi since the Second Tuathi War

  Gamay: a mature seerwine pitcher plant which grows in the forest near Pangusay

  Gerrolt Visser: Academy Groundsmaster, a gruff man with a deep love of all plants

  Ginina: a baker of skill at the Eshkin ancestral estate on Wisnuk Bay, and Kiwani’s birth mother

  Godsmaw: the Karkhedonian and Muggenhem term for the Gyre

  Gorwin: a duelist in Kiwani’s duel den

  Graela: one of Tala’s Solo classmates

  Greer: the Academy’s head Meditation Instructor

  Griogair: Iulan’s hexbird companion in Katacha

  Gushgirls/gushlings: half-smitten fans

  Gyre: the dangerous circular sea located in the northeast part of the empire, bordering Pallithea and Helderaard, south of the independent realm of Karkhedon. Known for its frequent, deadly storms and swift, swirling currents. Known as the Godsmaw to the denizens of Karkhedon and the city of Muggenhem

  Hahliq: the leader of Savitu’s small band of warriors, he perished during the Battle of the Kheerzaal

  Hall of Seals: the assembly room for all Academy gatherings. A circular dais is surrounded by six sections of benches representing the six elements. Teachers, students and other staff sit in the sections favored by their skills or talents

  Hanna: Head Duelist at the Muggenhem duel den, and Calder's immediate superior

  Head Duelist: the duelist responsible for the upkeep, public relations, and duelists of their duel den. They approve all client choices of duelist and schedule all duels for their den

  Hedrick voorde Helderaard: the old emperor, Jaap’s father, now deceased

  Hegemon: title of the ruler of Karkhedon

  Helderaard: principal province of the Waarden Empire, in the center of its lands, containing Akkeraad, the capital city

  Helma de Rood: Master Duelist who lived a century ago and died fighting in the War of Steel. Her sacrifice for the empire earned her and her descendants the honorific “de Rood”

  Hetta: a Potioneer Savant in Odjin's cohort

  Hex: a group of six duelists assigned to train together after passing their basic exams. A hex is also the basic military unit of the duelist army in times of war

  Hex house: a small building where members of the same hex can gather on campus. Hex houses are laid out in six rows of six, built up the side of a steep hill. Each row of hex houses is traditionally given an elemental designation

  Hexbirds: cousins of the crow, hexbirds have lived amongst duelists for millennia. They’re believed to be smarter than crows, lucky, and perhaps even infused with a little magic

  Hexing: casting hexmagic in the forms of two or more avatars, elements, or magics at the same time

  Hexling: mildly derogatory term for a student assigned to a hex. Recently, the name given to any avatar created from more than one element

  Hexmagic Duelist: the third rank a student can achieve at the Duelist Academy, and the highest most students ever hope to achieve. Hexmagic Duelists can manifest all six elemental avatars and can combine elemental magics with their hexmates to create nearly anything, except living creatures

  Hexmates: generally, any six students in the same hex at the Duelist Academy. The term has been co-opted to refer specifically to anyone in Bayan’s old hex. His exile caused a political rift between Emperor Jaap and some of his supporters. In the chaotic aftermath, the Hexmates—Calder, Kiwani, Eward, Tarin, Taban, and Aleida—were often used as a rallying point for those who believed the emperor was exercising too much power over those gifted with magic within his borders. The emperor ordered them topped out at the Academy and dispersed across the empire, but the term has remained in use

  High Ways: Imperial roads stretching between major cities, maintained by the empire to facilitate trade and travel

  Idle: to control an avatar’s motions, but not cast any spells. To Idle an avatar, the duelist must maintain the shape of the sacred motion that matches the avatar’s element

  Ignaas witten Oost: an influential instructor on the Academy campus, the minor Waarden noble is the empire’s only Master Duelist. He takes over the position of headmaster, but continues to teach his own private hand-picked students

  Imee Magittang: Bayan’s former lovemate. Daughter of Isagani Magittang. She follows her betrothed, Dakila, to Renallen, where they learn
Bayan has been exiled and is beyond their assistance. A merchant’s daughter to the core, Imee finds work managing Dakila and his hundred Balanganese volunteers as caravan security personnel

  Imperial Duelist: a duelist of any rank assigned to the Kheerzaal

  Indentured: a servant with a finite number of years to serve. Indentureds usually enter service due to financial need or to learn a valuable trade with a master tradesman or guild, such as the Firedust Guild

  Ingerika: a trio singer and member of Tala's coterie

  Invocation: a combination of sacred motions that open the duelist up to either elemental magic in general, or a specific element, or avatar-level spells. The Elemental Invocation is usually performed at the beginning of a duel or a bout of arena practice at the Academy, but during a trainee’s first semester on campus, it is performed only once a day, at the beginning of the day, to tame and focus the trainee’s magic through daily exposure to the sacred motions and with meditation. Other, more specific invocations are performed after the duelist has invoked elemental magic to bring about specific kinds of spells