GLOSSARY OF TERMS, NAMES, AND PLACES

NOTE: THIS INFO IS HOW IT HAS BEEN TOLD IN THE STORY. SOME OF IT IS WRONG.

* Aeristha: A powerful, possibly immortal, magic user. When Kaelos threatens her, she claims to have "more important matters to attend to" than aiding the orcs and elves against the humans. Kaelos tries to tempt her with "the secret to godhood", implying she is not yet a god.

* Alira Starwind: She is the elven queen and is said to have "seen empires rise and fall." She also sings to the stars and is able to hear them sing in return.

* Alric (Young Lord): Also called Alric Blackthorn and Lord Blackthorn (after his father's death). A young nobleman of House Blackthorn, and likely the heir. He is the same age as Lyanna. He survived the battle with the Ruin Beast, though he was severely wounded. It is unlikely he will become the heir to House Blackthorn as one of his cousins is an Ember Rider.

* Arthor: Known as The Father and The Father of Order. He is the god of judgment, "whose edicts bound the mortal and the immortal alike". He appears as a towering figure clad in silver armour with a silver scale weighing a sword and crown.

* Ash Stalkers: Creatures with "limbs of smoldering ash" seen during the Beast Tide.

* Ash-hounds: Skeletal creatures that act as the vanguard of the Beast Tide.

* Beast Tide: A large number of monsters. The Seers have predicted a large one. The Beast Tide is usually attributed to the actions of the trolls, however this one is unnaturally large and may have a different cause.

* Blackthorn (House, Army): A noble house in the human kingdom. Alec Blackthorn is the heir. They field at least two armies.

* Bloodweavers: Creatures seen during the Beast Tide. They spin webs and have venom that drains life.

* Burnt Sea: A large area of "endless ash dunes". It has "fissures in the ashen earth", is described as "cursed sands" and is difficult to travel across. Formed by Iona burning the kingdom of the orcs for their betrayal when she fell to the mortal plane.

* Cacophonus: An ancient dragon that Aurora can communicate with.

* Carrion Drakes: Creatures seen during the Beast Tide. They have a breath that is a "noxious fume of decay".

* Champions of Valior: The five best dragon riders within the human army. Karina, a dragon rider, was one of the five champions along with the Duke Blackthorn.

* Codex of Common Runes: A book containing every basic rune and information on how to use magic.

* Davor: A captain in Lyanna's army, likely the highest ranking officer after the death of Karina. He has served in the Queen's army for at least 30 years.

* Devourer: A very large monster, something stronger than Ruin Beast, whose tracks have been seen in the woods. Spawned from the Void.

* Dragon Scale: A material with exceptional Essence conductivity. It is superior to Wyvern Scale.

* Dragon riders: Men and women bonded to dragons.

* Drakgar Firehand: An orc who is set to become High Chief after the death of his father-Garrok. His wife is a engineer. He has undergone eight essence rituals.

* Dreg-cursed: An insult implying someone is worthless or untrustworthy.

* Duke Blackthorn: The leader of House Blackthorn, Alec Blackthorn's father and a former Champion before Karina took his title. He was killed in the battle against the orcs.

* Dune Krakens: "Titanic and many-limbed" creatures seen during the Beast Tide. They burrow and "sent ripples through the ground" as they approach.

* Eda: A camp aide who oversees the distribution of essence crystal shards to the mages. She is killed during the battle with the Ruin Beast. She is also Karina's lover and a powerful mage.

* Eldara: The Goddess of Wisdom. One of her temples is in Kraggath's Hollow.

* Elemental Bronze: A dwarven alloy that is an exceptional conductor of light and heat Essence.

* Elves: A race of people who are known for their skill with magic and archery. The humans plan to attack the elven sacred groves. They lie inside the Great Forest which lies to the south of the Human kingdom with a strech of Burnt Sea seperating the two races.

* Ember: One of the twin swords carried by Lyanna Mirrorguard.

* Ember Rider: A high ranking dragon rider. One of Alec Blackthorn's cousins is an Ember Rider.

* Essence: The source of magic. It is required to power magic and can be found in the environment and in crystals.

* Essence crystals: Crystalline formations found within the Burnt Sea that hold potent magical energy. They are essential for powering various technologies, replenishing essence pools, and serving as offerings to the gods.

* Essence pool: The amount of essence a magic user can store. Lyanna's is small.

* Essence rituals: Rituals that imbue someone with essence, increasing their strength and endurance. Thorgar Ironhide has undergone seventeen, while Drakgar Firehand has undergone eight.

* Fallen One (Broken One): Called Iona by the orcs and trolls. She was once a goddess, but was betrayed by the other gods and fell to the mortal plane. Her meddling with the Void unleashed the monsters that plague the kingdoms causing the humans, orcs, elves and the goblins to fight a war against her.

* Feredal (Grandmaster): A Grandmaster from House Mirrorguard, likely a relative of Lyanna. He is comatose after the battle with the Ruin Beast, and his prognosis is grim.

* Ghorna: An orc who is second-in-command to Thorgar Ironhide.

* Gloomwings: Shadowy, bat-like creatures seen during the Beast Tide.

* Grandmasters: Powerful mages. There are less than fifty in the entire kingdom. They are efficient with their essence.

* Greenhaven: A small town in the human kingdom where Kael grew up. Greenhaven was located near the Burnt Sea and the edge of a vast forest and was destroyed in the Beast Tide.

* Griffin: A large magical flying, eagle-like creatures with the bodies of lions that some soldiers are bonded with.

* Harvest Moon Festival: An annual event where young people aged seventeen are evaluated by the Queen's agents for their skills and potential and are assigned their roles in society, potentially earning them opportunities for further training or even the chance to bond with griffins or dragons.

* High Chief Garrok: The leader of the orcs.

* Humans: One of the races in this world. They are currently at war with the orcs. Their kingdom trades with the other kingdoms and this trade is sometimes disrupted by the actions of the trolls.

* Iona: See The Fallen One.

* Ironhide, Thorgar (General): Called The Right Hand of High Chief Garrok and The Shield of Kaelos. He leads the orc army against the humans. He has undergone seventeen essence rituals. He fights the Ruin Beast that attacks the orc convoy.

* Jaron: The resident baker of Greenhaven whose wife and son were killed in the Beast Tide, with him following shortly. He was always kind to Kael.

* Kael: A young man from Greenhaven who is studying to be a rune mage. He has a strained relationship with his father.

* Kaelos: A god worshipped by the orcs and elves. He is the source of essence for the orcs. He is "the Shattered God" and his state of mind is unstable. He is also called "the Unyielding" and "the very essence of war". He rarely grants mercy or aid.

* Kairos Initiative: A project led by Dagna Runeweaver that involves runes, magic, and mechanics. It requires the work of over five hundred knowledge mages and many Seers. The initiative has developed a way to predict the future. The initiative has concluded that the elves must be destroyed.

* Kandria: A city in the human kingdom, the seat of power for the Mirrorgaurd family. It is under attack from the Beast Tide, led by two Ruin Beasts.

* Karina (Champion): Lyanna’s older sister and a Champion of Valior. She is a dragon rider bonded to Pyrope and the commander of the Mirrorguard army. She is killed, along with Pyrope, during the battle against a Ruin Beast.

* Kraggath's Hollow: The capital of the goblin kingdom. It is built on a swamp and is connected by canals.

* Knowledge mages: Mages that are part of the Kairos Initiative. Each handles groups of twenty essence containers. They can perform calculation, remember knowledge at superhuman levels.

* Lyanna: The full name is Lyanna Mirrorguard. She is a young noblewoman and commander in the human army. She is the younger sister of Karina. Her essence pool is small, despite four years of cultivation. She is learning to be a mage and can use ash and blood magic and loves her twin swords Scarlet and Ember. She can also heal using the Healing Rune on Scarlet. She can also use the Ash Rune on Ember. She wants to bond with a dragon. She lost several fingers on her right hand during the battle with the Ruin Beast.

* Lyria: The Queen of the humans. She is bonded with the dragon Aurora.

* Mara: A cook who cares for Lyanna.

* Mirrorguard (House, Army): A noble house in the human kingdom. Lyanna and Karina are members. The house motto is: "Through the mirror’s pane, we see our true selves. And only those who emerge unbroken can shield the innocent from the shadows and cast the undeserving into the darkness." The house has lost one Grandmaster and a second is close to death.

* Nyxalor: A sapphire dragon that is bonded with Seren.

* Oculus: The mountain city which houses the Kairos Initiative.

* Oran (Captain): A captain in Lyanna's army.

* Orcs: A race currently at war with the humans. They live in the Burnt Sea. They scavenge for essence crystals. Their cities "crawled across the dunes on steam engines". They have cannons and shields powered by essence crystals. They worship the god Kaelos. Some orcs remember Iona. They are allied with the trolls.

* Periscope: A long, thin tube with mirrors that Garrok uses to see above the crevice. It is made of metal and has runes carved on its side.

* Poor Dwarf's Mithril (Red Steel): A dwarven alloy that is able to conduct essence of all affinities.

* Pyrope: Karina's bonded Dragon. They are killed, along with Karina, during the battle with the Ruin Beast.

* Queen (The, Her Majesty): See Lyria.

* Queen's Agent: An official who attends the Harvest Moon Festival and decides who to send to university.

* Queen's army: The army of the human kingdom.

* Queen's Rune Academy: A school that teaches rune magic.

* Ragna: High Chief Garrok's bonded dragon.

* Red Steel: See Poor Dwarf's Mithril.

* Redstone: A magical mineral that conducts heat Essence.

* Rintra: The lover of Ruzik Skybreaker and priest of Eldara. She is trying to find the formula for the orcish alloy.

* Roderic Valior: The man who gave his name to the human kingdom. Roderic Valior was a knight who fought the first beast tide with his dragon, Valareth.

* Roafthar: An elderly camp aide in Lyanna's army.

* Ruin Beast(s): A powerful monster summoned by Kaelos. They are "creatures that could crush armies as if they were nothing more than ash in the wind". One attacks the orc convoy. They can be killed by dragon fire and essence explosions. They are the most powerful creatures in the Beast Tide. Two are leading the attack on Kandria. The Ruin Beast that is fought by the Mirrorguard and Blackthorn armies is described as a "grotesque amalgamation of jagged wood and writhing vines", having immense segmented limbs ending in crystalline blades, spikes of obsidian, clusters of eyes that glow different colours, and emitting dark spores that cause soldiers to cough up blood.

* Rune(s): Magical symbols. They are carved onto objects to give them magical properties. They are used to control essence.

* Rune magic: Magic that uses runes. The effectiveness of rune magic is dependent on the essence conductivity of the material the runes are inscribed on.

* Runeweaver, Dagna: The leader of the Kairos Initiative. She is Lyria's sister-in-law.

* Ruzik Skybreaker (Captain): A goblin airship captain. He invented the technology that allowed the goblins to build powerful airships.

* Seers: Magic users that can see the future. They work with the Kairos Initiative to predict the Beast Tide. They have warned of great bloodshed.

* Seren (Warden): A dragon rider and commander in the human army. He was in command of Lyanna's army while she was unconscious, but is leaving to join the fight in Kandria. He has command of a wing of dragon riders.

* Skybreaker cannon(s): A powerful magical cannon that can destroy hordes of monsters, or a village. It is powered by a large essence crystal.

* Skybreaker platform: The platform that the Skybreaker cannon is mounted on. It is large enough to hold a small army.

* Skybreaker Syndicate: The organisation that Ruzik Skybreaker leads.

* Skystriders: Large airships being developed by the Skybreaker Syndicate.

* Subrunes: Advanced rune modifications that can alter the intent, strength, and effects of base runes, allowing for a wider range of magical applications.

* Trolls: A race that worships Iona. They often manipulate the Beast Tide to weaken the human kingdom. There are thirteen human corps stationed on the border with the trolls.

* Valareth: Roderic Valior's dragon.

* Valior: The human kingdom.

* Void: A mysterious realm that is beyond to the mortal plane. Home to beings that even the gods are scared of. Home of the Devourers.

* Wraiths: Shadowy creatures that are part of the vanguard of the Beast Tide.

* Wyvern riders: Soldiers in the orcish army who ride wyverns.

* Wyvern Scale: A material with some Essence conductivity, though it is less potent than Dragon Scale.