General Concepts
Aether
The stuff that exists within, around, and between all things, it has been called many things in different cultures and times, but today it’s most commonly referred to as aether, quintessence, or essentia, and sometimes shortened to quintus or essence. A very old term, atoms, has largely fallen out of use.
Aetherite
When aether is collected into a physical form, it is called a aetherite (metal), aetherium (crystal), or aetheron (gasses, liquids, and gels). Sometimes the metal is called aethril, in homage to Tolkien’s mithril. Aetherite has the highest potential density, but the product is essentially permanent and immutable. Aetherium and aetheron can both be used as aether batteries, breaking apart when the last of the aether is drawn from it.
Creaturae
One of the more formal catch-all terms for sentient beings with some supernatural aspect to them. Magi, tending to be the most pretentious and snooty of all non-mundane peoples, sometimes make a distinction between themselves and Creaturae with some specific heritage or source.
Other common terms mostly reference the historicity of the Creaturae, and include: bygones, eidolons, holdovers, praets (short for praeternaturals), revenants, remnants, and relics.
Drakus
The term, both singular and plural, for individuals who are imbued with the essence or soul of a dragon, whether one that has lived past lives or newly formed.
Dream, the
The collective dreamspace of living beings. Direct contact between individual dreams is exceedingly rare and difficult to accomplish intentionally.
Dungeons
A catch-all term for different places in the world where, by chance or design, magic is in a state of unusually dynamic flux, often producing strange and dangerous flora, fauna, and, sometimes, treasure.
Emergence, the
A physical transformation drakus undergo when the essence of their past and current incarnations fully integrate with one another.
Hearthbond
A primal aspect of magic connected to the ancient laws of hospitality, it can provide a level of power and protection to a person when they are in their demesne. As ideas about privacy and private property have grown stronger, so has the potency of this effect.
Savant
A kind of wild talent magic-worker whose magic is largely internalized to affect and enhance their natural capabilities. Physical and mental savants are the most common, though in some cases savants are even more specialized, leading to things like strength and perception savants.
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The Hidden Society of the Creaturae
Byways
Hidden paths in the mundane world only accessible to Creaturae. They are often small, unobtrusive, and underground, but in certain cities can be quite large.
The Byways in New York City are essentially two- and four-lane roads that can accommodate vehicle traffic. They are mostly hidden under and around the subway systems.
Council of Archons
Also known as the Synedrion Eidola, this council consists of three members of the Vigiles who are the ultimate authority over the organization. They have personal agents who are officially titled as Strategoi, though some prefer to use a Latin title that is roughly equivalent and call them Consuls.
Drakon, the
Also known as the Drakon Society, Ordo Draconum, and other names, it is an ancient secret society whose members are imbued with the essence or soul of dragons. It is led by three individuals, the Triumvirate of Flame, which consists of the Primus Draconis, Cordus Draconis, and Animus Draconis.
Ekwiyakink
Also called the hidden borough, the sixth borough, or the underworld, Ekwiyakink is a series of interconnected subterranean settlements inhabited mostly by goblins and orcs, but with a decent share of dwarves, gnomes, and others.
The name is an anglicized form of a Lenape phrase “èkwii hakink,” which translates to “under the ground.”
Four Pillars, the
The four relatively simple laws that govern the behaviors of various individuals and factions in the hidden world of the Creaturae.
These laws are:
* Death is a loss to us all, murder the greatest theft.
* Thy essentia is thine own.
* The secret must be kept.
* Time is inviolable.
Goblin Market
A hidden marketplace catering to the Creaturae. In Manhattan, it is located beneath the East Broadway Mall in Chinatown under the Manhattan Bridge with a public access point in a tiny bookstore tucked away on a lower level of the mall.
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Lux and lumens (currency)
Although Creaturae use regular money, they also have their own form of currency, called lux. Lux is aether, or quintessence, given a tangible form. The value of lux is determined by how much aether is infused into the currency, or how many lumens it holds.
At the lowest levels, metal currency is used in the forms of coins and small plaques. The metals used are copper, silver, electrum, gold, platinum, and aethril. For values beyond a single aethril coin, aetheron and aetherium are used.
Creaturae in the modern era even have their own banks and can get personal bank cards, although physical currency is still widely used.
Outsider's Council, the
A council that governs Ekwiyakink and has nominal authority over all goblins, orcs, and gnomes residing in New York City.
Rite of Renewal
An elven ritual in which specific, personal memories are removed, allowing them to experience life as an entirely different person with a completely fresh perspective.
Tribulations, the
When it is thought a new Primus Draconis has been discovered, they are required to perform three tasks to either fully awaken to their nature, demonstrate beyond refute they are the rightful heir, or both. These three tasks are commonly referred to as escaping the vault, entering the depths, and retrieving the sceptre.
Vigiles Creaturae
An independent organization that enforces what few laws have been adopted by consensus as affecting all Creaturae (see: Four Pillars), regardless of origin or affiliation.
The Vigiles was formed as a new order of magi, unprecedented because it accepted other Creaturae into its ranks, in the early eighth century in Constantinople. The Vigiles has undergone two major Reformations since its inception, one in 1453 establishing the Vigiles as fully independent of all other factions and again in 1690 when the current Third Pillar was introduced.
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The Magic of a Mythic World
Magic
Magic is accomplished through the manipulation of aether, an omnipresent metaphysical force. There are four elements that influence any feat of magic:
* Expertise (how skillfully the magic is performed)
* Engine (the way the magic is enacted)
* Emotion (mental dissonance that has to be managed)
* Expectation (how ‘impossible’ the magic is thought to be)
Attunement
A less significant version of dedicating a talisman, this mystic process still forms a kind of bond or connection between a Creaturae and an item with magical qualities and is particularly useful as a minor security measure for restricting ease of use to others.
Autonomous Construct
Artificial beings created by magic — simulacra, golems, gargoyles, and the like — who have gained a significant degree of intelligence and consciousness. They are capable of acting independently and even refusing the orders of the makers.
Ceremonial Magic and High Ritual
Ornate, intricately structured magical spells that rely heavily on symbolic implements, like litanies, runestones, and the like, in their casting instead of an individual’s mental framework. The use of such heavy symbolism and the consistency of their practice in history has helped to anchor the magic more deeply in the aether, giving it a bit more mystic weight.
Chanterns
Also commonly known as cantrips, chanterns are exceedingly simple spells composed of between one and three well-established symbols and a very brief incantation. While they are relatively weak, their reliance on components deeply ingrained in the practice of magic and human culture make them some of the more stable and versatile spells in existence.
Entropic Fire
A powerful magic, entropic fire attacks the aetheric connections within an object, causing mutations with brief exposure and leading all the way up to full disincorporation. Because of the nature of the flames, it can only be created in a specifically defined point in space and must remain there permanently.
Extra-Dimensional Storage (EDS)
Storage containers that are manipulated with dimensional magic so that they can hold much more than should otherwise fit inside. Similar magic can be performed on physical structures, as well.
Spells of Sacrifice
When performing magic, the caster can sacrifice some of their life force to the magic to greatly empower it. This is irreversible and dangerous, as it can be very difficult to control how much of a caster’s life is given to the magic. In the most extreme cases, a person will intentionally relinquish whatever life is left to them, overcharging the spell by dying in the process.
Talisman
A talisman is an object that has had a magical connection forged between it and an individual. Dedicating a talisman to an individual generally allows them to conceal or store the item in a mystical marking somewhere on their body for later retrieval and use.
Threefold Doors
Once a very popular, if expensive, method of protecting access to a location in a structure, this magic creates a layer of hidden doors. The first door is no door, the second is hidden behind the facade and will often be connected to a dimensional space meant to act as a trap or decoy, while the third, real door remains hidden behind it.
Wands
A common tool for channeling magic, wands (and staves) are usually designed to perform one or more specific feats of magic, rather than being an unrefined focus for any spell a Creaturae might want to perform. Those kinds of wands do exist, but they are far less effective, providing very little in terms of enhancing casting as anything more than an implement in structured magic. Wands are (almost) never sentient and (almost) never choose their wielders.