The Thousandfold Thought (The Prince of Nothing, Book 3) (93 page)
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Authors: R. Scott Bakker
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Scylvendi
—The dark-haired, pale-blue-eyed, and fair-skinned race predominantly concentrated in and around the Jiünati Steppe. One of the Five Tribes of Men.
—The dark-haired, pale-blue-eyed, and fair-skinned race predominantly concentrated in and around the Jiünati Steppe. One of the Five Tribes of Men.
Seat, the
—A symbolic name for the station of Shriah.
—A symbolic name for the station of Shriah.
Secharib Plains
—The vast alluvial tablelands that sweep north from the River Sayut in High Ainon, noted for their fertility (sixty- to seventy-fold crop yields) and dense population.
—The vast alluvial tablelands that sweep north from the River Sayut in High Ainon, noted for their fertility (sixty- to seventy-fold crop yields) and dense population.
Second Apocalypse
—The hypothetical catastrophe that will inevitably befall Eärwa should the No-God ever walk again. According to the Mandate tradition, Anasûrimbor Celmomas, the High King of Kûniüri during the Apocalypse, prophesied that the No-God will in fact return. The prevention of the Second Apocalypse is the Mandate’s ultimate goal.
—The hypothetical catastrophe that will inevitably befall Eärwa should the No-God ever walk again. According to the Mandate tradition, Anasûrimbor Celmomas, the High King of Kûniüri during the Apocalypse, prophesied that the No-God will in fact return. The prevention of the Second Apocalypse is the Mandate’s ultimate goal.
Seleukara
—The commercial capital of Kian, and one of the great cities of the Three Seas.
—The commercial capital of Kian, and one of the great cities of the Three Seas.
Selial Column
—A division of the Imperial Nansur Army traditionally stationed on the Kianene frontier.
—A division of the Imperial Nansur Army traditionally stationed on the Kianene frontier.
“selling peaches ...”
—A common Three Seas euphemism for selling sex.
—A common Three Seas euphemism for selling sex.
Sempis River
—One of the great river systems of Eärwa, draining vast tracts of the Jiünati Steppe and emptying into the Meneanor Sea.
—One of the great river systems of Eärwa, draining vast tracts of the Jiünati Steppe and emptying into the Meneanor Sea.
Seökti
(4051- )—The Heresiarch of the Cishaurim.
(4051- )—The Heresiarch of the Cishaurim.
Sepherathindor
(4065-4111)—The Count-Palatine of the Ainoni palatinate of Hinnant, claimed by disease at Caraskand.
(4065-4111)—The Count-Palatine of the Ainoni palatinate of Hinnant, claimed by disease at Caraskand.
Seswatha
(2089-2168)—The founder of the School of Mandate and implacable enemy of the Consult throughout the Apocalypse. Born the caste-menial son of a Trysean bronzesmith, Seswatha was identified as one of the Few at a very young age and brought to Sauglish to study with the Gnostic School of Sohonc. A prodigy, he became the youngest sorcerer of rank in the history of the Sohonc at the age of fifteen. During this time he became fast friends with Anasûrimbor Celmomas, a so-called “Hostage of the Sohonc,” as the School referred to its resident exoteric students. As this strategic friendship might suggest, Seswatha proved an adroit political operator, both before becoming Grandmaster and after, forging relationships with important personages across the Three Seas, including Nil’giccas, the Nonman King of Ishterebinth, and Anaxophus, who would become the High King of Kyraneas. These skills, in addition to his peerless command of the Gnosis, would make him the natural, if not the titular, leader of the various wars waged against the Consult before the Apocalypse. He and Celmomas would become estranged during this time, apparently because Celmomas resented Seswatha’s influence over his youngest son, Nau-Cayûti, but legends have long circulated that Nau-Cayûti was in fact Seswatha’s son, the product of an illicit union between him and Sharal, the most prized of Celmomas’s wives. They would not be reconciled until the eve of the Apocalypse—after it was far too late. See
Apocalypse
.
(2089-2168)—The founder of the School of Mandate and implacable enemy of the Consult throughout the Apocalypse. Born the caste-menial son of a Trysean bronzesmith, Seswatha was identified as one of the Few at a very young age and brought to Sauglish to study with the Gnostic School of Sohonc. A prodigy, he became the youngest sorcerer of rank in the history of the Sohonc at the age of fifteen. During this time he became fast friends with Anasûrimbor Celmomas, a so-called “Hostage of the Sohonc,” as the School referred to its resident exoteric students. As this strategic friendship might suggest, Seswatha proved an adroit political operator, both before becoming Grandmaster and after, forging relationships with important personages across the Three Seas, including Nil’giccas, the Nonman King of Ishterebinth, and Anaxophus, who would become the High King of Kyraneas. These skills, in addition to his peerless command of the Gnosis, would make him the natural, if not the titular, leader of the various wars waged against the Consult before the Apocalypse. He and Celmomas would become estranged during this time, apparently because Celmomas resented Seswatha’s influence over his youngest son, Nau-Cayûti, but legends have long circulated that Nau-Cayûti was in fact Seswatha’s son, the product of an illicit union between him and Sharal, the most prized of Celmomas’s wives. They would not be reconciled until the eve of the Apocalypse—after it was far too late. See
Apocalypse
.
Seswatha’s Dreams
—See
Dreams, the
.
—See
Dreams, the
.
Seswatha’s Heart
—The mummified heart of Seswatha, which is the key artifact in the so-called Grasping, the sorcerous rites that transfer Seswatha’s memories of the Apocalypse to Mandate Schoolmen. See
Mandate, School of
.
—The mummified heart of Seswatha, which is the key artifact in the so-called Grasping, the sorcerous rites that transfer Seswatha’s memories of the Apocalypse to Mandate Schoolmen. See
Mandate, School of
.
Setpanares
(4059-4111)—The General in command of the Ainoni contingent of the First Holy War, slain by Cinganjehoi at Anwurat.
(4059-4111)—The General in command of the Ainoni contingent of the First Holy War, slain by Cinganjehoi at Anwurat.
Shaeönanra
(
c.
1086- )—“Gift of Light” (Umeritic) The Grandvizier of the Mangaecca who, according to legend, went mad studying the Incû-Holoinas, and whose subsequent acts would eventually see him convicted of impiety and his School outlawed in 1123. The greatest prodigy of his age, Shaeönanra claimed to have rediscovered a means of saving the souls of those damned by sorcery. He reputedly spent his life investigating various soul-trapping sorceries in the hope of avoiding passage to the Outside—and to great effect, given that he allegedly continues to live some three thousand years afterward, though in an obscene and unnatural manner. By the fourteenth century the Trysean annals began referring to him as Shauriatas, the “Cheater of Gods.”
(
c.
1086- )—“Gift of Light” (Umeritic) The Grandvizier of the Mangaecca who, according to legend, went mad studying the Incû-Holoinas, and whose subsequent acts would eventually see him convicted of impiety and his School outlawed in 1123. The greatest prodigy of his age, Shaeönanra claimed to have rediscovered a means of saving the souls of those damned by sorcery. He reputedly spent his life investigating various soul-trapping sorceries in the hope of avoiding passage to the Outside—and to great effect, given that he allegedly continues to live some three thousand years afterward, though in an obscene and unnatural manner. By the fourteenth century the Trysean annals began referring to him as Shauriatas, the “Cheater of Gods.”
Shakers
—The name given to extreme devotees of Onkis who claim that their fits of shaking are the result of divine possession.
—The name given to extreme devotees of Onkis who claim that their fits of shaking are the result of divine possession.
Shanipal, Kemrates
(4066- )—The Baron of Hirhamet, a district in south central Conriya.
(4066- )—The Baron of Hirhamet, a district in south central Conriya.
Shaul River
—The second most important river system in the Nansur Empire, after the Phayus.
—The second most important river system in the Nansur Empire, after the Phayus.
Shauriatas
(
c.
1086- )—“Cheater of Gods” (Umeritic) See
Shaeönanra
.
(
c.
1086- )—“Cheater of Gods” (Umeritic) See
Shaeönanra
.
Shelgal
(?-?)—One of the Chieftain-Kings named in the Tusk.
(?-?)—One of the Chieftain-Kings named in the Tusk.
Shemic
—The language group of the ancient non-Nilnameshi pastoralists of the southwestern Three Seas.
—The language group of the ancient non-Nilnameshi pastoralists of the southwestern Three Seas.
Shem-Varsi
—The language group of the proto-Nilnameshi pastoralists of the southwestern Three Seas.
—The language group of the proto-Nilnameshi pastoralists of the southwestern Three Seas.
Sheyic
—The language of the Ceneian Empire, which still serves, in debased form, as the liturgical language of the Thousand Temples and as the “common tongue” of the Three Seas.
—The language of the Ceneian Empire, which still serves, in debased form, as the liturgical language of the Thousand Temples and as the “common tongue” of the Three Seas.
Sheyo-Buskrit
—The language of Nilnameshi labouring castes, a derivative of High Sheyic and Sapmatari.
—The language of Nilnameshi labouring castes, a derivative of High Sheyic and Sapmatari.
Sheyo-Kheremic
—The lost language of the lower castes of the Eastern Ceneian Empire.
—The lost language of the lower castes of the Eastern Ceneian Empire.
Sheyo-Xerashi
—The language of Xerash, a derivative of Xerashi and High Sheyic.
—The language of Xerash, a derivative of Xerashi and High Sheyic.
Shield-Breaker, the
—A common name for Gilgaöl, God of War.
—A common name for Gilgaöl, God of War.
Shigek
—A governorate of Kian and former province of the Nansur Empire. Located on the fertile delta and alluvial plains of the River Sempis, Shigek was the ancient competitor of Kyraneas and the first civilized nation of the Three Seas.
—A governorate of Kian and former province of the Nansur Empire. Located on the fertile delta and alluvial plains of the River Sempis, Shigek was the ancient competitor of Kyraneas and the first civilized nation of the Three Seas.
Shigek reached the height of her power during the so-called Old Dynasty period, when a succession of Shigeki God-Kings extended their dominion to the limits of the Kyranae Plains in the north and to ancient Eumarna to the south. Great cities (of which only Iothiah survives) and monumental works, including the famed Ziggurats, were raised along the River Sempis. At some point in the twelfth century various Ketyai tribes began asserting their independence on the Kyranae Plains, and the God-Kings found themselves waging incessant war. Then, in 1591, the God-King Mithoser II was decisively defeated by the Kyraneans at Narakit, and Shigek began its long tenure as a tributary to greater powers. It was most recently conquered in 3933 by the Fanim hosts of Fan’oukarji III. Much to the dismay of the Thousand Temples, the Kianene method of simply taxing non-believers—as opposed to out-and-out persecuting them—led to the wholesale conversion of the populace to Fanimry within a few short generations.
Shikol
(2118-2202)—The King of ancient Xerash, famed for sentencing Inri Sejenus to death in 2198, as recounted in
The Tractate
. For obvious reasons, his name has become synonymous with moral corruption among the Inrithi.
(2118-2202)—The King of ancient Xerash, famed for sentencing Inri Sejenus to death in 2198, as recounted in
The Tractate
. For obvious reasons, his name has become synonymous with moral corruption among the Inrithi.
Shimeh
—The second-holiest city of Inrithism, located in Amoteu, and the site of Inri Sejenus’s ascension to the Nail of Heaven.
—The second-holiest city of Inrithism, located in Amoteu, and the site of Inri Sejenus’s ascension to the Nail of Heaven.
Shinoth
—The legendary main gate of ancient Trysë.
—The legendary main gate of ancient Trysë.
Shir
—An ancient city-state on the River Maurat that eventually became the Shiradi Empire. See
Shiradi Empire
.
—An ancient city-state on the River Maurat that eventually became the Shiradi Empire. See
Shiradi Empire
.
Shiradi Empire
—The first great nation to arise in the eastern Three Seas, where it ruled much of what is now Cengemis, Conriya, and High Ainon for much of Far Antiquity. By
c
. 500 a number of Hamori Ketyai tribes had settled the length of the River Sayut and the Secharib Plains, becoming more sedentary and socially stratified as they exploited the rich cereal yields afforded by the fertile soils of the region. But unlike Shigek, where the first God-Kings were able to unify the Sempis River Valley quite early, Seto-Annaria, as it came to be called (after the two most dominant tribes), remained a collection of warring city-states. Eventually the balance of power shifted to the north, to the city-state of Shir on the River Maurat, and sometime in the thirteenth century it managed to subdue all the cities of Seto-Annaria, though its rulers would spend generations putting down rebellions (the Seto-Annarians apparently thought themselves superior to their uncouth cousins from the north). Then, sometime in the fifteenth century, Xiuhianni invaders from Jekk ravaged the empire and Shir was razed to the ground. The survivors moved the capital to ancient Aöknyssus (the present administrative capital of Conriya), and after some twenty years managed to oust the Eännean invaders. Centuries of stability followed, until 2153, when the forces of the No-God inflicted a disastrous defeat on the Shiradi at the Battle of Nurubal. The following two hundred years of chaos and internecine warfare effectively destroyed what remained of the empire and its central institutions.
—The first great nation to arise in the eastern Three Seas, where it ruled much of what is now Cengemis, Conriya, and High Ainon for much of Far Antiquity. By
c
. 500 a number of Hamori Ketyai tribes had settled the length of the River Sayut and the Secharib Plains, becoming more sedentary and socially stratified as they exploited the rich cereal yields afforded by the fertile soils of the region. But unlike Shigek, where the first God-Kings were able to unify the Sempis River Valley quite early, Seto-Annaria, as it came to be called (after the two most dominant tribes), remained a collection of warring city-states. Eventually the balance of power shifted to the north, to the city-state of Shir on the River Maurat, and sometime in the thirteenth century it managed to subdue all the cities of Seto-Annaria, though its rulers would spend generations putting down rebellions (the Seto-Annarians apparently thought themselves superior to their uncouth cousins from the north). Then, sometime in the fifteenth century, Xiuhianni invaders from Jekk ravaged the empire and Shir was razed to the ground. The survivors moved the capital to ancient Aöknyssus (the present administrative capital of Conriya), and after some twenty years managed to oust the Eännean invaders. Centuries of stability followed, until 2153, when the forces of the No-God inflicted a disastrous defeat on the Shiradi at the Battle of Nurubal. The following two hundred years of chaos and internecine warfare effectively destroyed what remained of the empire and its central institutions.
The influence of ancient Shir is evident in many respects in the eastern Ketyai nations of the Three Seas, from the revering of beards (first cultivated by caste-nobles to distinguish themselves from the Xiuhianni, who were reputed to be unable to grow beards) to the continued use of a Shiradi-derived pictographic script in High Ainon.
Shortest Way
—See
Logos
.
—See
Logos
.
Shriah
—The title of the Apostle of the Latter Prophet, the administrative ruler of the Thousand Temples, and the spiritual leader of the Inrithi.
—The title of the Apostle of the Latter Prophet, the administrative ruler of the Thousand Temples, and the spiritual leader of the Inrithi.
Shrial Apparati
—The generic term for career and hereditary functionaries in the Thousand Temples.
—The generic term for career and hereditary functionaries in the Thousand Temples.
Shrial Censure
—The excommunication of Inrithi from the Thousand Temples. Since it rescinds all rights to property and vassalage as well as to worship, the worldly consequences of Shrial Censure are often as extreme as the spiritual. When King Sareat II of Galeoth was censured by Psailas II in 4072, for instance, fairly half of his client nobles rebelled, and Sareat was forced to walk barefoot from Oswenta to Sumna in contrition.
—The excommunication of Inrithi from the Thousand Temples. Since it rescinds all rights to property and vassalage as well as to worship, the worldly consequences of Shrial Censure are often as extreme as the spiritual. When King Sareat II of Galeoth was censured by Psailas II in 4072, for instance, fairly half of his client nobles rebelled, and Sareat was forced to walk barefoot from Oswenta to Sumna in contrition.
Shrial Knights
—Also known as Knights of the Tusk. The monastic military order founded by Shriah Ekyannus the Golden in 2511, charged with prosecuting the will of the Shriah.
—Also known as Knights of the Tusk. The monastic military order founded by Shriah Ekyannus the Golden in 2511, charged with prosecuting the will of the Shriah.
Shrial Law
—The ecclesiastical law of the Thousand Temples, which in a labyrinthine variety of forms serves as the common law for much of the Three Seas, particularly for those areas lacking any strong secular authority.
—The ecclesiastical law of the Thousand Temples, which in a labyrinthine variety of forms serves as the common law for much of the Three Seas, particularly for those areas lacking any strong secular authority.
Shrial Priests
—Inrithi clerics who, as opposed to Cultic Priests, are part of the hierarchies of the Thousand Temples, and perform the liturgies of the Latter Prophet and the God rather than those of the Gods.
—Inrithi clerics who, as opposed to Cultic Priests, are part of the hierarchies of the Thousand Temples, and perform the liturgies of the Latter Prophet and the God rather than those of the Gods.
Shrial Remission
—A writ issued by the Thousand Temples absolving an individual of sin. Remissions are commonly awarded to those who accomplish some act of penance, such as joining a pilgrimage or a sanctioned war against unbelievers. Historically, however, they are primarily sold.
—A writ issued by the Thousand Temples absolving an individual of sin. Remissions are commonly awarded to those who accomplish some act of penance, such as joining a pilgrimage or a sanctioned war against unbelievers. Historically, however, they are primarily sold.
Shrial Warrant
—A writ issued by the Thousand Temples authorizing the arrest of an individual for the purpose of trial in the ecclesiastical courts.
—A writ issued by the Thousand Temples authorizing the arrest of an individual for the purpose of trial in the ecclesiastical courts.
Sign of Gierra
—The twin serpents that Sumni harlots must have tattooed on the back of their left hand, apparently in imitation of the Priestesses of Gierra.
—The twin serpents that Sumni harlots must have tattooed on the back of their left hand, apparently in imitation of the Priestesses of Gierra.
Simas, Polchias
(4052- )—Achamian’s old teacher and a member of the Quorum, the ruling council of the School of Mandate.
(4052- )—Achamian’s old teacher and a member of the Quorum, the ruling council of the School of Mandate.
Sinerses
(4076- )—A Shield-Captain of the Javreh and favourite of Hanamanu Eleäzaras.
(4076- )—A Shield-Captain of the Javreh and favourite of Hanamanu Eleäzaras.
Singer-in-the-Dark
—See
Onkis
.
—See
Onkis
.
Siqu
—Generally, the term referring to Nonmen who find themselves in the service of Men, usually as mercenaries or in some advisory capacity. Specifically, those Nonmen who participated in the so-called Nonmen Tutelage from 555 to 825. See
Nonmen Tutelage
.
—Generally, the term referring to Nonmen who find themselves in the service of Men, usually as mercenaries or in some advisory capacity. Specifically, those Nonmen who participated in the so-called Nonmen Tutelage from 555 to 825. See
Nonmen Tutelage
.
Sirol ab Kascamandri
(4004- )—The youngest daughter of Kascamandri ab Tepherokar.
(4004- )—The youngest daughter of Kascamandri ab Tepherokar.
Skafadi
—A Kianene name for the Scylvendi.
—A Kianene name for the Scylvendi.
Skafra
—One of the principal Wracu, or Dragons, of the Apocalypse, finally slain by Seswatha at Mengedda in 2155.
—One of the principal Wracu, or Dragons, of the Apocalypse, finally slain by Seswatha at Mengedda in 2155.
Skagwa
—A fiefdom on the Thunyeri Sranc Marches.
—A fiefdom on the Thunyeri Sranc Marches.
Skaiyelt, Hringa
(4073-4111)—The eldest son of King Rauschang of Thunyerus and leader of the Thunyeri contingent of the Holy War. Claimed by disease at Caraskand.
(4073-4111)—The eldest son of King Rauschang of Thunyerus and leader of the Thunyeri contingent of the Holy War. Claimed by disease at Caraskand.
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