Spoiler-Free Glossary
Nophek Gloss
** Pronunciation notes are my best approximations
Nophek Gloss~ary
Abriss Cetre — The Prime of the Dynast faction of Unity. She is a direct descendent on the Dynast family line. Abriss possesses the highest rank of Graven genetics in any current living being. Due to the harmonious “gravitas” created by her genes, her presence imposes love and loyalty in all species. Through advanced astrology calculated in the Dynast Hold’s incomparable orrery, she is able to read the motion of celestial bodies and divine information about events, individuals, and the past and future. Abriss governs Unity peacefully with the help of various councils and bodies, largely ignoring the multiverse outside of Unity. Her focus is on scientific, anthropological, and philosophical research about the Graven. Abriss believes the Graven aimed to correct the multiplicity of the multiverse—caused by an ancient catastrophe—and unite it back into central Unity to make space and time one continuum of known physical laws. (she/her pronouns)
** Pronunciation: Abriss like “abyss” with an R. Cetre like ket-rah.
acceleration — Expensive and energy-intensive technology that can enhance an individual’s age by a specified time duration while also programming the brain and body with skills and knowledge. The process takes mere moments regardless of the amount of time the individual is accelerating. Acceleration can be paired with desenescence—reverse-aging—to invest an individual with abilities without affecting physical life-span. Not all species are able to undergo acceleration.
Andalvian (endaal) — A humanoid species whose chromatophoric skin cells act like colored pixels, reflecting their brain activity in changing patterns and colors. Andalvian emotions are expressed involuntarily on their skin, but their culture is stoic and dispassionate, valuing composure. They are sharply intelligent, straightforward, and honest, most often involved in the sciences, and heavily involved in Cartographer affairs. Their native language is rich with multiple meanings and contextual nuance, able to condense multiple phrases into one. All Andalvians are from Andalvia and of the endaal species, but not all endaal are accepted by Andalvia. Some raciations have variations in chromatophore structure and expression, and additional physical attributes.
atmoseal — A membrane of energy and particulates commonly found in place of an airlock, sealing in pressure and gases. The atmoseal stretches over the opening of a passageway or ship aperture. Closely related to cloudsuit technology.
Caiden Winn — A mechanic boy raised on an agrarian world designed to grow a single livestock species. From the age of four he was raised by a parental unit: two individuals dividing the task of training him to replace one of their work positions. “Winn” is a fake name he adopted first for safety then as his official passager name. Caiden is fourteen years old at the story start. (he/him pronouns)
** Pronunciation: Caiden like kay-din. Winn like the word “win.”
Cartographer — The Cartographers are a long-standing and diversely membered organization dedicated to mapping the expanding multiverse, understanding its content, and making it safer for travelers. They facilitate first contact with newfound cultures and organize ambassadorial trips to invite worlds into the wider multiversal culture. They maintain a free, public database of information, and charge for specific chartings, while paying passagers for data on newly charted territory and related work. The Cartographers’ efforts in cultural exchange, education, and mediation has prevented or alleviated galactic wars throughout centuries, though they are not a governing force nor do they operate a military. Cartographers believe there is a holistic purpose behind the multiverse, and that basic knowledge must remain free and new worlds integrated into a sum whole of understanding.
Cartographer Den — Resource hubs on space stations or planets, scattered throughout the multiverse. There is at least one Den per universe of habitable size, located near a stellar egress when possible. They provide Cartographer services, including sales and purchases, medical, and mechanics. Neutral ground is strictly enforced in the “bar” section of every Den. Within Unity, the only Cartographer Den is located in Emporia.
Casthen — A private organization that has been monopolizing economy, trade, and mercenary services for centuries. They are governed by a Prime. Their ranks are populated primarily by hybrids from interbreeding and genetic engineering projects, focused on generating adherents adept at their roles, or resistant to multiversal variances and illnesses. It is rumored that the Dynast—who does not interact with the multiverse outside of Unity—contracts the Casthen to procure goods. The location of their headquarters, the Casthen Harvest, is a closely guarded secret.
** Pronunciation: cass-then
chketin — A humanoid species common in the multiverse. Though muscular, powerful, and never shorter than two meters tall, they are a shrewd and intelligent species integrated deeply into Cartographer function. Chketin are slow to deliberate but stubborn in their final stance, leading others to nickname them “walls.”
** Pronunciation: cha-ket-in
clarient — Ethereal beings that anchor into or parasitize physical systems. They are sometimes captured in machines and enslaved for computing. One theory suggests that they parasitize the brains of young nophek and are responsible for the gradual crystallization of gloss.
cloudsuit — A body harness netting that emits a membrane across the user’s body, like a second skin. The membrane’s material puffs apart into a vaporous field of protective particles that regulate personal atmosphere and protect from external factors. It allows for complete freedom of movement and condenses back against the body under extreme pressure but does not provide armoring. There are variations of this style of suit for use underwater, in other inimical environments, and for general species accessibility.
crossover — The process of crossing through a rind from one universe to another. This involves physiological adjustment to changes in physics on the other side, and exposure to unique energy fluctuations within. Depending on the unique nature of the individual rind, crossover may impair, destroy, or alter biology and technology. Some things can exist within a universe safely but cannot cross over without detriment. The Cartographers maintain an ongoing database of such universal parameters.
CWN82 — A medium-size universe that was falsely reported to be unstable for crossover. These reports propagated by the Casthen faction allowed them to keep the universe exclusive to their use and away from scrutiny. Upon planets within this universe, Casthen organized the cultivation of nophek and feed production.
Çydanza — The Casthen Prime, who has been in office for the recorded centuries that the Casthen have existed. It is unclear whether Çydanza founded the Casthen or merely assumed control. Despite general opposition against the Casthen’s morally questionable scope of operations, Çydanza has never been accessed or assassinated, nor has she perished, leading to various rumors about her physical nature, or whether “Çydanza” is more of a title than an individual. Though she makes broadcasts verbally, her appearance has never been recorded. (she/her pronouns)
** Pronunciation: sigh-dan-zah
Dynast — The governing endarchy of Unity. The Dynast are dedicated to the harmonious functioning of all planetary systems within Unity, and the search for knowledge about the ancient Graven. The Dynast’s centralized government is led by an assembly under control of an appointed Prime descended from the Dynast family. The Dynast believes that the fall of the Graven civilization happened at the same time that Unity was divided into the new, expanding worlds of the multiverse, and that these outer worlds are corrupt and untenable.
Dynast Hold — A palace at one of the poles of Solthar, the planet at the center of Unity and therefore the multiverse as a whole. The Hold is the heart of Dynast operations and the home of Abriss Cetre. It is constructed primarily of lightseep obsidian filled out with materials more amenable to habitation.
Emporia — A large space station of colonized lightseep obsidian that is a hub for various factions in Unity. It is said that anything can be bought, sold, or sourced in Emporia. The station is located close to the border of Unity.
En (Endirion Day) — A notorious rogue across the multiverse, and known by various names, En is a proficient fighter, gambler, lover, and negotiator. They are the muscle of Laythan’s crew and fill various other roles, including sales and purchases. En is a completely augmented human, sporting a hybrid organic-machine body with a small percentage of original biological matter. Within material limitations, they can alter their physique and features to whatever they want, with entirely fluid gender expression. The stability of Laythan’s crew has helped En address a former addiction to change and proclivity to use violence as avoidance. (any pronouns)
** Pronunciation: Like the letter “N.” In full, en-deer-ee-on, Day like the word “day.”
Glasliq — A rare type of material and also the term for starships that use it in their construction: a crystalline matter that can morph between liquid and solid, reconfiguring shape on a metallic frame, making it supremely agile and resilient against universal conditions. One Glasliq vessel belongs to Threi, a Casthen Enforcer.
** Pronunciation: glass-lick
glave — General term for a personally equipped defensive or offensive weaponry. Glave technology varies in type and effect, and is sourced from a variety of cultures.
gloss — The most valuable substance in the multiverse, gloss is an extremely rare energetic material, developed inside the maturing brains of nophek creatures. It can take both solid and liquid form, and is utilized to power Graven technology and generate starship fuel. Some believe that gloss is produced by the parasitization of nophek brains and the crystallization of the pineal gland and surrounding tissues.
gravitas — The Dynast’s term for the loyalty-inducing effect generated by biological beings with Graven genetics. It is conceptualized as a proximity field around the individual, affecting the various senses to degrees dependent on species and physical mitigations. As there are multiple types of Graven energy, the effect of gravitas is assumed to be different for each type.
Graven — An ancient species and civilization about which much is still unknown. An extinction event wiped out most traces of the Graven—both genetics and technology—leaving behind architectural ruins and remnants across the multiverse. There are various theories as to whether the Graven participated in or even created the multiverse, or if they were indeed wiped out in the same event that divided Unity into expanding daughter universes. Graven genetics remain in the human descendants of the Dynast family, presumed to be the last holdout of the Graven’s participation in physical life. Graven humans possess a biological resonance, “gravitas,” that coerces loyalty from other beings. The effect intensifies by proximity and sensory exposure, and affects some species more fully than others.
** Pronunciation: Like the word “graven,” that is “grave” with an N.
Graven trinity — The Graven energetic forces are divided into three types or strains: harmonic, enharmonic, and stabilizer. The three are sometimes conceptualized as body and spirit balanced by a cohesive force, or as order and chaos controlled by neutrality. One is the Dynast type, which is physically embodied in the genes of the Dynast family, and represents harmony and affinity, a structuring force that is the root of the “gravitas” effect.
Graves — The Dynast’s Graven research has sought to approximate the Graven species’s physical nature, consciousness, sensory extension, and luminiferous existence. Abriss Cetre has made extensive progress via conditioning a group of individuals of various species through a complex biological process of radiation and gene transfection. With additional understanding of the Graven trinity, her goal became to unify that trinity within a physical body of non-Graven makeup. The Graves are able to consciously access the luminiferity, a spiritual domain of collective consciousness freed from space and time, where accumulative knowledge is available non-locally. The Dynast hopes that this new information domain will give them fresh insight into who and what the Graven were.
holosplay — A detailed holographic display. Light organizes along a three-dimensional gridded field of tensor points in the air.
Ksiñe (Kasiñae) — A medical biologist, surgeon, gastronomer, and animal expert. He was formerly embroiled in a crime syndicate as their medic and torturer. After capture during a rival faction’s takeover, Ksiñe escaped by slaughtering the entire group. He sold their organs to gain funds to flee the planet, then became a reclusive but renown figure in the medical crime arena until Laythan eventually adopted him into the crew. Having formerly owned many animals for companionship and security, he now has only a rare whipkin pet that Panca gifted to him in egg form. Like many endaal, Ksiñe is nonbinary. (he/him or they/them pronouns)
** Pronunciation: kiss-in-yay or ks-in-yeh, the ñ serves as a “ny” sound.
Laythan Paraïa — Former pilot turned multiversal passager, he started with simple trade and salvage jobs while slowly picking up strays and assembling his misfit crew, which allowed for riskier operations. His starship, the Dava, was modded best in class, highly maneuverable while allowing for heavy and specialized cargo, and outfitted with material to withstand most crossovers. He is still a proficient pilot, but abstains from the role, and it is unclear whether this is because of lag in his visual prosthetics or because of psychological aversion. He has a difficult history with the Dynast faction and served many years blind in a labor prison before escaping into the wider multiverse. (he/him pronouns)
** Pronunciation: lay-thin, Paraïa like the word “pariah.”
Leta—Caiden’s childhood friend who he befriended by consistently providing comfort and safety from her parental unit’s abuse. Leta is neurodivergent and highly sensitive, perceptive and proficient at pattern recognition, which made Caiden consider her wiser than him despite her younger age. She was being trained for a clinician or animal husbandry determination, soon to undergo Appraisal to confirm her physiological worth and determination competency. Leta is ten years old at the story start. (she/her pronouns)
** Pronunciation: A soft “e” between lee-tah and lay-tah.
lightseep obsidian — The physical condensation of energy structures previously existing in spiritual, immaterial dimensions un-phased with physical reality. After the fall of the Graven civilization and the rupture of the singular universe into many, the vibration of the Graven’s lightseep slowed and materialized into visible matter, appearing crystalline and transparent. Lightseep is impossible to move, break, or tool, but many of the lightseep ruins throughout the multiverse have been colonized and repurposed using other materials inside.
luminiferity — A nonphysical dimension of energy and information from which physical reality manifests. It is conceptualized as a collective field of consciousness that exists outside of but in relation to linear spacetime, and it is believed that individual consciousnesses are condensations of this field. After death, the consciousness re-expands into the luminiferity. Abriss aims to access the accumulated knowledge and experience inhabiting this dimension through the Graves, who are able to detach their consciousnesses from the physical and inhabit the luminiferity as coherent entities.
mauya — A delicate, semi-humanoid species accustomed to low gravity. Mauya are highly intuitive, and physically remarkable for their fleshy wings and long, crystalline hair.
** Pronunciation: Like the “mou” part of “mouth” plus yah
memory jog — A process that stimulates the subject’s memory and records brain activity, which is then reconstituted into a visual recording of events. The process does not work for all species, and some experience debilitating side effects.
morphcoat — A jacket made of a morphic material that changes qualities in response to mental state or mood. Useful when traversing frequently between environments and temperatures. Closely related to the morphfabric developed by the Dynast.
multiverse — The combined conglomerate of variously sized bubble-shaped universes embedded within one another or stuck together like a foam. Their shared surfaces are “rinds” of energy that separate differences in physics between universe interiors. At an unknown point in history, smaller universes began to bubble off of the outer border of Unity, the original singular universe and now the center of the inflating multiverse. On the fringes of the multiverse, new universes are constantly developing and expanding.
nophek — A rare quadruped mammal species from an unknown native planet. Their biology can exist only in specific universal parameters without medical intervention. Nophek are vicious and intelligent carnivorous pack animals. Reddish black in color, their muscular bodies range from one to two meters tall at the withers. They are covered in a mix of fur and rough, scaly skin. As a nophek matures, highly valuable gloss crystallizes within its brain.
** Pronunciation: no-feck
Panca (Pan Carai) — The clone of a saisn high official, as is a common practice in the core saisn sects, she was grown in a stimulus-free environment as a “blank slate” for a complete nervous system transfer. A political scandal ended in the official’s death. Panca, a nonverbal witness and of no value as a replacement, had memories wrung out of her as testimony then was sold as a cheap “machine spirit,” a stand-in for a species designed to live within starship engine rooms and tune/attune with them. When the ship she was sold to ended up derelict after a fight—all the crew dead—Panca lived on inside it drifting in space until Laythan boarded for salvage. She became the mechanic on the Dava, a safe space for rehabilitation. She is able to assess and solve mechanical problems deftly, is an empath, and due to the saisn’s delicate nervous system and specialized organs, she exists in a “sense-sea” of broad spectrum sensory information. (she/her pronouns)
** Pronunciation: Between pan-ka and pahn-ka, full name pan-car-eye.
passager — A free individual registered with the Cartographers as a multiversal explorer, bound to a code of rights and allowed access to advanced Cartographer services.
Prime — The singular leader of a sufficiently large organization. Within the Dynast, Prime status is hereditary.
Proxy — One of the hybrid organic-inorganic mechanical bodies designed by Abriss Cetre specifically for each of the seven Graves. The Proxies remotely contain and are driven by the Graves’ individual consciousnesses, allowing their real bodies to remain safe within the Dynast hold.
rind — An interstitial space between universes, like an energy membrane, dividing universes from one another. Rinds can be passed through without resistance, but not all physiologies or technology can cross over without damage. The alterations in physics that rinds impress on objects passing through is individual to each rind.
RM28 — A mostly desert planet with the right environmental conditions to sustain nophek. The Casthen established nophek packs here, and sustained them with periodic feed shipments.
saavee — Roughly humanoid in shape, but with unusual skull structure and facial features. Saavee are common across the multiverse and take up a variety of jobs, especially prevalent in mechanical technology disciplines. From a curious and gregarious culture, they are generally considered friendly and helpful to all species.
** Pronunciation: sah-vee
saisn — Tall, lean humanoid xenids known for their fine muscular control and sensitive nervous systems. All saisn develop a specialized sensory organ in the brain that is visible as a transparent, faceted core in their forehead. They are immersed in a “sense-sea”—a broad frequency range of sensory detail. Saisn culture is philosophical and refined, politically complex, and quite secretive to outsiders. Within the Cartographers, saisn often serve on the culture council and as ambassadors to newly discovered worlds and first-contact missions.
** Pronunciation: say-sen
scalar gravity — Artificial gravity generated in a patterned matrix of nodes and antinodes within a short range. These scalar gravity fields pattern force in space to levitate objects or to anchor them against surfaces. This gravity system is used for starships, stations, and on a small scale for maneuvering objects or creating force fields.
scour — A tubular chamber that can cleanse and restore xenids of all biological type. It cleans skin and clothing, heals minor wounds, kills parasites, and eliminates internal waste. Scour technology is common throughout the multiverse.
Solthar — A planet at the center of Unity, which is also the center of the multiverse. Some speculate the core of the planet is liquid lightseep, a unique small universe, a special black hole, or a great machine generating the universe. Solthar is the Dynast’s homeworld.
stellar egress — Remnant Graven technology: instantaneous two-way spacetime shortcuts from one specific location in the multiverse to another specific location. They not only cut down on travel time but allow entrance into universes while bypassing the need to cross through a rind. This can open up exploration in universes otherwise too dangerous to cross over into.
Taitn Maray Artensi — A former pilot prodigy and war hero with the Bielskan military. The second to join Laythan’s crew, Taitn was picked up worse for wear from ship wreckage out in the plains. Laythan is the only person who knows Taitn’s hidden history. He’s Laythan’s pilot and could be considered one of the best pilots in the multiverse. Due to his youth in the military and a later altercation with En, he has trauma issues around female-presenting individuals, but bonded closely with Panca after joining the crew. (he/him pronouns)
** Pronunciation: Like the name “Titan” or the word “tighten.”
tal — With vaguely humanoid skeletal structure, these xenid have morphic flesh, a ruffled, smokelike solid matter that flows between shapes: solid and limblike, or fanned out like broad cloth. Tal are fairly uncommon in the multiverse.
Threi — A Casthen Enforcer—combination of emissary and soldier—assigned by Çydanza on sensitive missions. He is one of the highest ranking members of the Casthen, or otherwise enjoys special freedoms. He owns a rare Glasliq starship built of a morphic liquid crystalline matter. Threi built a crew of four mixed xenid underlings who accompany him on many missions: Towa (tal), Silye (mauya hybrid), Jet (chketin hybrid), and Pinch (saavee hybrid). (he/him pronouns)
** Pronunciation: thray.
twitch drive — A ship flight-control system that uses the pilot’s muscular control, rather than conventional neural control. It is considered more reliable and comprehensive. Twitch drives usually consist of two or more pliable panels to encase fingers or comparable appendages, but may also involve—via the seat—the full musculoskeletal system of the body. The theory behind this flight method emerged from the technical riding of creatures, where the flow of energy and pressure links the two neural and musculoskeletal systems together in a feedback circuit.
Unity — Once the sole universe during the time of the Graven civilization, Unity is the largest universe and the most central to the entirety of the multiverse. It is slowly inflating and absorbing planets and other celestial bodies at its expanding border. The Dynast faction governs Unity, and has immigration programs for affected border worlds. The physical and metaphysical laws within Unity are so well understood, nearly all disease and ailment is preventable, life-spans can be lengthened, education is free, one language is common, technology has perfected resource generation and waste management, and citizens understand how to align with reality to manifest their desires and needs. For many, Unity is considered the paragon of safety and comfort.
vishkant — Rare, mostly incorporeal xenids with vaporous bodies that congeal into solid form in response to an observer’s consciousness—thoughts or memories—and assume the form of a familiar person. The vishkant’s appearance and solidity is partially real and partially observer hallucination elicited by pheromone. When the impression of external consciousness is removed, the vishkant’s molecules return to a neutral, vaporous state. Older vishkant can maintain a form of their choosing and resist exterior influence. Due to their shapeshifting ability, vishkant are often employed in espionage as manipulators, or in pleasure trades as manipulated.
** Pronunciation: Like “fish” but V instead of F, plus a soft “can’t” like the name Kant.
whipkin — A short-furred, egg-laying mammal around one-half meter long from nose to tail. They are omnivores adapted to a saline woodland environment, with long-fingered paws for climbing, and patagia between forelimbs and hind limbs for gliding and swimming. They are extremely intelligent, but shy and reclusive in the wild. Ksiñe owns a pet whipkin.
xenid — Generic term for an individual of an alien species, usually but not exclusively applied to nonhumans.
** Pronunciation: zee-nid