Al karmez mano sango signifas nenios (al karm-ez mah-no saen-go sig-nif-as neen-ee-ohs)

  “To the crimson hands, blood means nothing”. This phrase is a quote from a Dioj proverb (see Dioj) in which a villager is asked to do small acts of evil for large rewards, sometimes being a demon or evil spirit. The villager, who is often depicted as a virtuous person to start with, is gradually asked to perform more insidious acts and is greeted with the phrase every time they resist the spirit. The moral of the story is to not start down an evil path, because once you do it is easier to continue and harder to turn around.

  Akva (hak-va)

  A god of the dark shard (see Malklara Peceto) composed of Maluma, Kreska, and Akva. She is the youngest of the shard and is the youngest of all the gods, and is associated with water, time, laws, systems, and rules. She is depicted as an ocean queen covered in shell armor and wears a coral crown. Not many commune with this god as she tends to hold a grudge and it is easy to fall out of favor with her, those that do perform her spells typically do so using “sacred geometry” types of drawing - though not always. Her metal is mercury and her cardinal direction is in the North West of the Great Seal.

  Estra (ae-stra)

  Literally translates to ‘boss’, but doesn’t carry the same kind of hierarchical meaning, it is simply a title of respect in many clans of the light shard (see Gojo Peceto). This is typically used by members of a clan to address prominent figures in the clan, it is also used by clan leaders to address other clan leaders. This title isn’t officially given at any particular point, but is used with memoirs of well known families or those who have reached their sixth level within the clan (see stelo).

  Dioj (Dee-ohge)

  An extinct language that had some influence on Latin in sound, but uses cuneiform style characters similar to old Turkish or foundational Arabic. Much of what has survived comes in the form of sayings, lessons, or prayers and has been kept somewhat alive by members of Peceto or coven (see Gojo Peceto or Malklara Peceto). While Dioj refers to the language, it can also be used to describe the religion of worshiping any of the gods of the unicursal hexagram, often simply called the Diojian gods (though since Dioj literally means ‘gods’ this is redundant).

  Gojo Peceto (go-jo pek-ae-toe)

  “Joyous coven”, though members of this group long took to calling their covens ‘clans’. Gojo refers to the joy of freedom, but also the burden of it. These members worship one of the gods of the light shard (also called the new shard, the font or father’s half) these members believe in freedom of choice and as such have a very loose hierarchy. A member cannot be ordered to do something, or forced to comply with a clan ruling - instead that member can simply separate themselves and form a new clan. They worship gods Fulmo, Fajra, and Sielo. These members believe that consistency breeds stagnation, they are constantly moving and trying to better themselves and their people, sometimes to their own detriment - but it is the price to pay for progress.

  Kunera (koo-nera)

  The exact translation is difficult to put into some languages, loosely meaning “fellow bosses”. Derived from kune estra which was contracted to kunêtra and again to kunera. The original spelling can still be used, but it sounds archaic. Kune doesn’t quite mean friends or ‘fellow’ - a more accurate translation would be “those who have chosen to be here with me”. This phrase implies that all those who are being addressed have an equal voice in the matter, or at least will be equally heard.

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  Lasi (la-see)

  Derived from forlasi meaning abandoned. This is a traditional practice for many light shard clans (see Gojo Peceto) in which children (usually older than 12, but not always) were moved out of their parents home and into a dorm like commune with other lasi children. At that moment they are given some degree of autonomy and are treated as an adult in some respects, though are not fully accepted into the coven until they get their first star (see stelo). These lasim (plural for lasi) are often pseudo adopted by wealthier more influential families as apprentices and as such the practice is more common with poorer families.

  Malklara Peceto (mach-lara pek-ae-toe)

  Literally translates to “murky coven” but could be translated as “secretive coven”. This refers to anyone who worships one of the gods of the dark shard, also called the old shard or mother’s half and refers to the gods Maluma, Kreska, and Akva. The worshipers of these gods are often very secretive about their dealings, members and actions. Members of this group tend to like consistency and do not like to change or upset the status quo - as they work hard to make sure the status quo is set in their favor. They favor a strict hierarchy within each coven and each coven also has a quasi republic style structure.

  Malhela (mall-hella)

  Balance. While this word literally means ‘balance’ it is only used in that context in words predating the schism of the first clan. It is now used by dark shard practitioners to refer to the conflict between them and the light shard. For them, this is a conflict of restoring - or maintaining - balance, of keeping the people on top and the people on bottom in their respective places. The forces of order must always prevail in a sea of chaos.

  Neiniciato (neh-in-ick-ee-ahn-to)

  Uninitiated. This refers to all others outside the covens/clans (see gojo peceto and malklara peceto). This is something of a pejorative, but no uninitiated would likely ever hear it.

  Revregno (rev-reg-no)

  Realm of dreams. This literally means ‘a place of dreaming’, but is used almost exclusively in conjunction with dream mules (see Songemulo). Not much is known about this phenomenon as dream mules are not only very rare, but usually very secretive about the nature of their abilities. What is known is that it is a projection of the world as it was before the mule entered, and having seen that world, the real world is now on a slightly different path. Some mules refused to re-enter the dream realm having been unable to stop drastic events from unfolding. Some others chose to never leave - preferring the life of a dream over the real world.

  Stelo (stae-low)

  Star. This is used to gauge a light coven member’s (see gojo peceto) ability to commune with their god(s). There are six stars in total starting with hejmen, meaning home, this welcomes a child into adulthood. Most adults never make it past three or four, those that do reach the sixth star, called the sestelo, are welcomed into the governing body for the clan. This body does make rules for their people, but these are more like suggestions given by the best among the clan. Those of the clan that do not follow the rules of the clan may face consequences, but they ultimately have the choice to leave.

  Songemulo (sohn-geh-moo-lo)

  Dream Mule. though can also be translated as “dream carrier”. This is used to refer to a rare gift to be able to enter the dreamscape (see Revregno). Only followers of Akva may become dream mules, and typically gain this ability well into their senior years, after many years of studying and practicing the teachings of their god. It is said that dream mules can see the future, but are almost always powerless to change it - the fabled oracles were such people.