Fallen Blade 04 - Blade Reforged (40 page)

After a time, my swords were ready. I picked them up and went quickly through a couple
of my modified forms. They felt exactly as they always had—the missing limbs I’d sacrificed
to the memory of my goddess were restored at last.

I’m not sure I like it,
Triss sent as he nosed at the freshly blackened guards of my swords.

I am. The Unblinking Eye of Justice has closed for-ever.

But the world
needs
justice.

Yes, it does. That’s part of why I painted them over. It will serve as a constant
reminder. The goddess may have closed her eyes, but that doesn’t mean I have to.

Alinthide Poisonhand
—A master Blade, the third to die making an attempt on Ashvik VI.

Alley-Knocker
—An illegal bar or cafe.

Anaryan, Earl of
—A Zhani noble.

Anyang
—Zhani city on the southern coast. Home of the winter palace.

Aral Kingslayer
—Ex-Blade turned jack of the shadow trades.

Ashelia
—A smuggler.

Ashvik VI, or Ashvik Dan Pridu
—Late King of Zhan, executed by Aral. Also known as the Butcher of Kadesh.

Athera Trinity
—The three-faced goddess of fate.

Balor Lifending
—God of the dead and the next Emperor of Heaven.

Black Jack
—A professional killer or assassin.

Blade
—Temple assassin of the goddess Namara.

Blinds
—Charms of confusion and befuddlement, mostly used by thieves in the Magelands.

Bontrang
—A miniature gryphon.

Calren the Taleteller
—God of beginnings and first Emperor of Heaven.

Caras Dust
—Powerful magically bred stimulant.

Caras Seed-Grinder
—Producer of caras dust.

Caras Snuffler
—A caras addict.

Channary Canal
—Canal running from the base of the Channary Hill to the Zien River in Tien.

Channary Hill
—One of the four great hills of Tien.

Chenjou Peninsula
—The peninsula to the north of Tien.

Chief Marshal
—Head of the Zhani military.

Chimney Forest
—The city above, rooftops,
etc.

Chimney Road
—A path across the rooftops of a city. “Running the chimney road.”

Coals
—Particularly hot stolen goods.

Code Martial
—Ancient system of Zhani law.

Cornerbright
—Magical device for seeing around corners.

Crownies
—A derogatory term for the Crown Guard in Zhan, used by the watch.

Crown Law
—Zhan’s modern legal system.

Dalridia
—Kingdom in the southern Hurnic Mountains.

Devin (Nightblade) Urslan
—A former Blade.

Dian
—A black jack in training in Tien.

Downunders
—A bad neighborhood in Tien.

Dracodon
—A large magical beast, renowned for the ivory in its tusks.

Dragon Crown
—The royal crown of Zhan, often replicated in insignia of Zhani Crown agents.

Drum-Ringer
—A bell enchanted to prevent eavesdropping.

Durkoth
—Others that live under the Hurnic Mountains.

Dustmen
—Dealers in caras dust.

Eavesman
—A spy or eavesdropper.

Elite, the
—Zhani mages. They fulfill the roles of secret police and spy corps among other functions.

Emberman
—A professional arsonist.

Emerald Throne
—The throne of the Sylvani Empire.

Erk Endfast
—Owner of the Spinnerfish, ex–black jack, ex–shadow captain.

Everdark, the
—The home dimension of the Shades.

Eyespy
—A type of eavesdropping spell.

Face, Facing
—Identity. “I’d faced myself as an Aveni bravo.”

Fallback
—A safe house.

Familiar Gift
—The ability to soul-bond with another being, providing the focus half of the power/focus
dichotomy necessary to become a mage.

Faran
—A onetime apprentice Blade.

Fire and Sun!
—A Shade curse.

Ghost, Ghosting
—To kill.

Govana
—Goddess of the herds.

Gram
—The name of the world.

Greatspell
—A major permanent work of magic, usually tied to a physical item.

Gryphon’s Head
—A tavern in Tien, the capital city of Zhan. Informal office for Aral.

Guttersiders
—Slang for the professional beggars and their allies.

Hand of Heaven
—The Son of Heaven’s office of the inquisition.

Harad
—Head librarian at the Ismere Library.

Hearsay
—A type of eavesdropping spell.

Heyin
—Lieutenant of the exiled Baroness Marchon.

Highside
—Neighborhood on the bay side of Tien.

Howler
—Slang name for the Elite.

Inverted Crown
—A Zhani brand applied to the cheeks or foreheads of traitors.

Ismere Club
—A private club for merchants.

Ismere Library
—A private lending library in Tien, founded by a wealthy merchant from Kadesh.

Issa Fivegoats
—A sellcinders or fence.

Jack
—A slang term for an unofficial or extragovernmental problem solver, see also, shadow
jack, black jack, sunside jack.

Jax Seldansbane
—A former Blade and onetime fiancée of Aral’s.

Jenua, Duchy of
—A duchy in Zhan.

Jerik
—The bartender/owner of the Gryphon’s Head tavern.

Jindu
—Tienese martial art heavily weighted toward punches and kicks.

Jinn’s
—A small cafe near the Ismere Library.

Kadeshar
—Chief city of Kadesh.

Kaelin Fei, Captain
—Watch officer in charge of Tien’s Silent Branch. Also known as the Mufflers.

Kaman
—A former Blade, crucified by the Elite, then killed by Aral at his own request.

Kanathean Hill
—One of the four great hills of Tien.

Kao-Li
—Fortress retreat of the Zhani royal family, upriver from Tien.

Kayarin Melkar
—A master Blade who joined the Son of Heaven after the fall of the temple.

Kelos Deathwalker
—A master Blade who taught Aral.

Keytrue
—A charm to prevent lock picking.

Khanates, the Four
—A group of interrelated kingdoms just north of Varya. Also known as the Kvanas.

Kijang, Duchy of
—A duchy in Zhan.

Kila
—The spirit dagger of the Blade, symbolizing his bond to Namara.

Kip-Claim
—Pawn shop.

Kodamia
—City-state to the west of Tien, controlling the only good pass through the Hurnic
Mountains.

Kuan-Lun
—A water elemental, one of the great dragons.

Kvanas, the Four
—Group of interrelated kingdoms just north of Varya. Sometimes referred to as the
Khanates.

Kyle’s
—An expensive Aveni whiskey.

Last Walk
—The road leading from the Smokeyard to the traitor’s gate in Tien.

Leyan
—A onetime journeyman Blade.

Little Varya
—An immigrant neighborhood in Tien.

Loris
—A former Blade.

Magearch
—Title for the mage governor of the cities in the Magelands.

Mageblind
—Mage term for those without magesight.

Mage Gift
—The ability to perform magic, providing the power half of the power/focus dichotomy
necessary to become a mage.

Magelands
—A loose confederation of city-states governed by the faculty of the mage colleges
that center them.

Magelights
—Relatively expensive permanent light globes made with magic.

Magesight
—The ability to see magic, part of the mage gift.

Mage Wastes
—Huge area of magically created wasteland on the western edge of the civilized lands.

Malthiss
—A Shade, familiar of Kelos Deathwalker.

Manny Three Fingers
—The cook at the Spinnerfish.

Marchon
—A barony in the kingdom of Zhan. The house emblem is a seated jade fox on a gold
background.

Maylien Dan Marchon Tal Pridu
—A former client of Aral’s.

Mufflers
—Captain Fei’s organization, so known because they keep things quiet. Officially known
as Silent Branch.

Nail-Puller
—Tienese street slang for a freelance torturer.

Namara
—The now-deceased goddess of justice and the downtrodden, patroness of the Blades.
Her symbol is an unblinking eye.

Nest-Not
—A ward to prevent vermin infestations.

Niala
—A Varyan liquor flavored with efik.

Nightcutter
—Assassin.

Nightghast
—One of the restless dead, known to eat humans.

Night Market
—The black market.

Nima
—Mana, the stuff of magic.

Nipperkins
—Magical vermin.

Noble Dragons
—Elemental beings that usually take the form of giant lizardlike creatures.

Nuriko Shadowfox
—A legendary renegade Blade killed by Kelos Deathwalker. Also known as the Kitsune.

Oil-Smear
—A charm to ward against eyespys.

Old Mews
—An upscale neighborhood in Tien that burned to the ground.

Orisa
—God of sailors.

Oris Plant
—A common weed that can be used to produce a cheap gray dye or an expensive black
one.

Others
—The various nonhuman races.

Palace Hill
—One of the four great hills of Tien.

Petty Dragons
—Giant acid-spitting lizards, not to be confused with noble dragons.

Poison
—Gutter slang meaning toxic or too hot to deal with.

Precasts
—Active spells kept precast and at the ready.

Pridu Dynasty
—Hereditary rulers of Zhan from around 2700 to the present day.

Prixia Dan Xaia
—Clan chief of Xankou.

Qamasiin
—A spirit of air.

Quink
—Slang word meaning, roughly, freak.

Rabbit Run
—An emergency escape route.

Rehira
—A high-end black jack in Tien, one of the few who’s not a mage.

Render’s Way
—A street in Tien.

Reshi
—A clanate in northern Zhan.

Resshath
—Shade term of respect meaning, roughly, teacher or sensei.

Restless Dead
—Catchall term for the undead.

Riel
—Currency of Zhan, issued in both silver and gold.

Right of Challenge
—Part of Zhan’s old Code Martial.

Risen, the
—A type of restless dead, similar to a zombie.

Royal Monetist
—Chief financial official of Zhan.

Sailmaker’s Street
—A street in Tien.

Sanjin Island
—Large island in the river below the palace in Tien.

Scheroc
—A qamasiin, or air spirit.

Sellcinders
—A fence or dealer in hot merchandise.

Serass
—A Shade, familiar of Alinthide.

Shade
—Familiar of the Blades, a living shadow.

Shadow Captain
—A mob boss.

Shadow Jack
—A jack who earns his living as a problem solver in the shadow trades.

Shadowside
—The underworld or demimonde.

Shadow-Slipping
—The collective name for the various stealth techniques of Namara’s Blades.

Shadow Trades
—The various flavors of illegal activity.

Shadow World
—The demimonde or underworld.

Shaisin
—Small town in Zhan, baronial seat of Marchon.

Shanglun
—A river dragon.

Shan Starshoulders
—The god who holds up the sky, current Emperor of Heaven, lord of stability.

Shatternot
—A charm to keep windows from breaking.

Shinsan
—A water elemental, one of the great dragons.

Shrouding
—When a Shade encloses his Blade in shadow.

Silent Branch
—The official name of the Mufflers.

Siri Mythkiller
—A former Blade.

Skaate’s
—A premium Aveni whiskey.

Skip
—A con game or other illegal job, also a “play.”

Sleepwalker
—An efik addict.

Slink
—Magical vermin.

Slip
—A person who tries to get out of paying back a moneylender. Also known as a debt
slip.

Smokeyard
—The prison in Zhan where traitors are held on their way to execution.