A Court Bright and Broken (Age of Fae #1)

Glossary

TERMS

A elius- fire god, a benevolent lesser deity

Alfheim - the Elven word for Heaven

Auspexiate - wizard, seer, wise man. Each lord would have an Auspexiate in his court to offer wise counsel and oversee kingdom- wide communications via Swift bird. One such royal counselor is Auspex Pavan, who serves King Pontus and the royal family

Austra - Sun goddess, a benevolent lesser deity

Earthwife- a human woman possessing knowledge and abilities beyond the understanding of most other humans. They are powerful healers and mystics but are secretive and have their own agendas, never giving something for nothing. Throughout history, Earthwives have traditionally been in conflict with the Fae. Sometimes referred to as witches.

Fireweed - a bright flowering plant harmless to humans but deadly to Elves

Glamour - exceptional natural talent or ability possessed by the Fae. Most are born with one glamour, but a few have more than one. Glamours may include physical or mental or emotional powers. It is common among Fae families for parents to have an identifying mark representing a child’s glamour gift tattooed on their skin in a prominent place when the glamour emerges

Grand Star –Their overarching deity , a being above all the benevolent lesser gods. There are also “fallen stars,” lesser gods who displeased the Grand Star and were therefore shaded. That is why “shaded stars” is an expletive in their world. Their version of hell is a place where all the stars are shaded and there is no light at all. It’s called the Land Without Stars.

Hermod - the god of wrath (one of the fallen stars)

Land without Stars - a place of darkness, isolation, and punishment, something like hell.

Retinue- a group of women who live in separate quarters from the family in a palace or great house and serve the reigning Fae lord (or royal) by providing companionship, entertainment, and pleasure.

Saol water- a slightly sweet Elven beverage/health elixir derived from tree roots; can be intoxicating in large quantities; speeds healing from wounds and illness, produces a feeling of warmth and well-being

Sway - a form of extreme persuasion possessed and practiced by Fae at varying levels of effectiveness. Elves are exceptional practitioners of Sway. It’s effective against other members of the Fae but especially against humans, who have no natural defenses against it

Swift bird- highly trained birds used for delivering correspondence throughout and between regions. They are capable of flying for ten months without stopping, as they sleep, eat, and even mate while flying. On average Swifts fly more than 500 miles each day, and are also the fastest birds on record, with an impressive top flight speed of sixty-nine miles per hour. Colored a dark brown with a white throat, they have long, pointed wings formed in a ‘boomerang’ shape. Like Elves, Swifts pair for life. The Auspexiate of a castle is in charge of the training and supervision of its flock of Swift birds.

Tenebris - god of Night, a benevolent lesser god

Village mother- a leader and advisor in the human world, much like a mayor. Each human village has one. Most village mothers are also Earthwives with the ability to form wards to keep unwelcome visitors out.

LANDS AND HISTORY

Avrandar is a realm located on the continent of The Sixlands, ruled by a monarch [Pontus Randalin] known as King of all Avrandar and Supreme Ruler of the Sixlands.

The Sixlands is comprised of these widespread regions—Nordica, Windros, Nordaris, Sundaris, Westerly, and Marinus.

The king of Avrandar sits on the Coral Throne in the capital city of Merisola in the Marinus region and lives and rules from Castle Seaspire.

The Sixlands of Avrandar were six separate kingdoms until two centuries ago when Pontus the Powerful determined to “unite” the vast and varied lands of the continent. He did this without bloodshed, using his Compelling glamour, enhanced by his son’s Exalting glamour.

The new kingdom created from Pontus’ Peace, as the conquest was dubbed, is still divided into six distinct territories, but he is ruler over them all, and the Lords who serve as the respective regions’ leaders all bend the knee to him.

No one travels in or tries to lay claim to the uninhabitable Icelands in the extreme north or the Hotlands in the far southern end of the continent.

There is a chain of islands that is the seat of Nymph power—the Allantian Isles, and the rest of the Fae leave the mountains in the highest elevations to the Dwarves, whose distinctive physical nature allows them to thrive in the cold and thin air.

Dryads are also Fae, but don’t seem to be organized like the Elves, living scattered in forests, apart from Elven society. The oceans and great lakes belong to the Selkies.

REGIONAL LORDS AND HOUSES

LORD OF NORDICA- Swyane Hyland. Castle: Winterreach; Colors: white and red; Signet- red bird

LORD OF WINDROS- Degan Lalor. Castle: Tempest Hall; Colors: black and gray; Signet- twisted leafless tree

LORD OF NORDARIS- Mallen Sillery. Castle: Rocky Rise; Colors: Brown and Dark Green; Signet- mountain range

LORD OF SUNDARIS- Elio Solan. Castle: Sandstone Palace; Colors: burnt orange and tan; Signet- sun

LORD OF WESTERLY- Halmar Espen. Castle: Sundown Peak; Colors: royal blue and yellow; Signet- Grizzly Bear

LORD OF MARINUS– Pontus Randalin handles this territory because it’s where he lives; Castle Seaspire; Colors- turquoise and navy; Signet- ocean waves

ALTUM—an underground cavern-kingdom in Eastern Sundaris ruled by a reclusive lord who does not allow his people to mix with humans and preserves the old ways. He is a thorn in the side of King Pontus because he does not seek high standing in the kingdom and is therefore difficult to manipulate. Rarely, if ever, seen in the High Court. LORD: Aydan Elardis; Colors: multiple shades of green and white; Signet- magnolia tree

SEAS OF THE SIXLANDS

The Sapphire Sea

The Great Gray Sea

The Cyan Sea

The Unsailable Seas

GLAMOURS

Turn the page to see images of the symbols/tattoos representing each glamour, or visit www.amypatrickbooks.com

Animal Communication -- the ability to communicate with and exert control over animals of all sorts

Artistry — allows for supernatural artistic talents in many disciplines; a human looking at a painting created by an Elf with artistic glamour would feel almost mesmerized and have a hard time tearing their eyes away. Elves can recognize when a fellow Elf has a certain glamour, but it doesn't have as strong an effect on them. Another Elf would enjoy the painting and be impressed but not be transfixed

Athletic prowess/physical power - Elves with this are especially strong and fast

Botany - a talent for cultivating crops and flowering plants; basically a supernatural green thumb-- plants sense their presence and respond to them; when an Elf with Botany glamour walks by, the grass seems to lean toward them

Compelling - all Elves have Sway, a persuasive ability that's especially effective on humans and allows them to get their way with direct eye contact and a simple suggestion or ask, but some Elves have extreme persuasion and influence over others. When they use their Compelling glamour, others are basically unable to resist complying, even other Elves

Culinary- exceptional talent with and affinity for food preparation; never need a recipe, they just know what to do

Empathy -- A sensitivity to the feelings and intentions of others; understanding other people's feelings even when they aren't trying to communicate them, sometimes even feeling them yourself; "reading" others well; not exactly like lie-detecting, but someone with this glamour would sense falseness in one trying to deceive.

Exalting (Stellon's glamour)— he's able to enhance the glamours of others and make them more powerful

Evanescing - the ability to evanesce, or transport oneself instantaneously from one location to another; to a witness, the person using this glamour would seem to vanish

Gleaning (Pharis' glamour)— A Gleaner who can temporarily borrow the glamour of other Elves

Healing - Elves with healing glamour heal others with their own energy by touching them and focusing

Intuition - a deep inner knowing about the right thing to do, which choice to select when there's a decision to be made; Elves with this glamour are good at problem solving for others and themselves and have a sense of calm about them

Luck - a rare glamour; Elves with this one tend to have everything go their way and lead what looks like a charmed life; you don't want one walking into your casino

Musical - extreme musical giftedness; the ability to transfix humans with singing or instrumental music

Transformation - the ability to radically transform the outward appearance of oneself, even to the point of looking like someone else

Truth/truthsaying - this glamour allows the Elf to be a living lie detector, always knowing the truth of a situation and when others are lying; Elves with this glamour are often employed in the courts by lords; the king has one as well