Glossary of magic

Anchor: a Salvager’s physical body

Ancient Language of the Earth: communication between species

Animas: women who transform to embody the physical qualities of apex predators and the ability to talk with other vertebrates; each Anima is tasked to bring humans back into ecological Order

The Anima’s Impetus: an inner motivation to fulfill the Task; acquiring an Impetus is the third and final stage of the Anima’s transformation

Anima metamorpha: a mutant of the fly agaric mushroom; ingesting the mushroom transforms a woman into the Anima; the mushroom grows at a Spirit Locus in a cycle determined by the golden ratio; atop its red cap, the white dots are arranged in the Flower of Life pattern

Commoners: humans without Keeper blood; the term is later modified to include humans not trained in Florávo, as well as those ignorant to the existence of magic

Death Revelations: prophetic poems Animas rehearse at the time of their death, revealing the Spirit Locus where the next mushroom will grow; the poem describes the Sacred Balance in practice at that particular Spirit Locus; the Anima learns the Death Revelation while traveling the Fourth during her coma, (the first third of her transformation)

Dimension, First: here; space

Dimension, Second: now; time

Dimension, Third: the past; both time and space

Dimension, Fourth: infinity; beyond time and space; also known as the Void

Disorder: forces and actions contrary to Order, resulting in ecological disarray and decay

Duals: the offspring of Salvagers; Duals can live up to 500 years old and have pure black eyes; though they do not have Hindsight, they make exceptionally powerful magic practitioners; Duals are always half-Salvager, half-Commoner, as no two Salvagers have successfully birthed a baby

Elders: the genderless and ageless “prototype” of species, born from the Source; they do not die unless killed; when an Elder is killed, its species goes extinct; Keepers and Animas are not aware of Elders’ existence

Florávo: the science and art of plant magic, established 1,200 YBP by the Salvager Laurel

Flower of Life: the white dots’ pattern atop the Anima metamorpha mushroom’s red cap, as well as the theorized pattern of Spirit Loci across the planet

Hindsight: Salvager’s ability to enter the Third Dimension of the Source—known simply as the Third—and witness any historical moment across space; Hindsight is used as a noun for a particular memory as well

Huntsman’s Magic: the mysterious capability certain magical artifacts have to block Salvager Hindsight

Keepers: the natural-born allies of the Anima; following the establishment of Florávo at the original Nafáit Haven (1,200 YBP), the term is modified to include Mages in service of the Anima’s Task, though not all natural-born Keepers agree to this inclusion

Life: the name of all living beings on the planet, in the context of Order; includes both the vast diversity of life forms and their interconnected relationships

Mages: students and practitioners of Florávo; High Mages are capable of all four applications of Florávo for both wild and domestic plants

Order: also known as the Sacred Balance and the Holy Paradox; the give and take of natural systems that sustains Life indefinitely

Plant Magic: every plant carries a particular energy, and when accessed through a learned magic practitioner, the plant’s power may be evoked and applied to a specific intent; practiced world-wide and across time by witches, shamans, medicine men and women, and, in the context of Florávo, Mages

Privacy Pact: a pact between Salvagers and Shapeshifters that Salvagers would not use their Hindsight to watch Shapeshifters in the Third unless it was imperative for the Task

Salvagers: humans born with the ability to enter the Third and witness the past, a magical power known as Hindsight; there are always three alive, (one of the south, one of the center, and one of the north); they have white-blue eyes and shockingly white hair; when Disorder is violently spreading, they experience debilitating migraines, which can lead to brain failure; they can live up to 3,500 years old; following the death of a Salvager, the next in its lineage (south, center, or north) is born at the Spirit Locus west of the previous Salvager’s Spirit Locus birthplace; Salvagers age as a Commoner would until puberty; following puberty, they age according to their supernatural lifespans; though Salvagers can procreate with Commoners, the fetus of two Salvagers will always die in the womb; the offspring of a Salvager is called a Dual; Salvagers offer the power of knowledge gleaned from the past and often fulfill roles of leadership, though they, unlike the blood-bonded Shapeshifters, are not obligated to partake in the Anima’s demonstrations of the Task

Shapeshifters: humans with the ability to transform into an animal; there is one Shapeshifter per terrestrial vertebrate, (totaling 32,500 at their genesis 9,336 YBP); they cannot die unless they are killed or if the Elder of their species is killed; they cannot survive outside their animal species’ natural habitat, (known as niches); likewise, their animal form cannot survive where humans could not survive, namely underwater, which is why there are no aquatic vertebrate Shapeshifters; they are infertile and cannot practice plant magic; their human attributes often reflect those of their animal forms; they are blood-bonded to the Anima and live beholden to her commands

Source: the nameless, formless force creating, dissipating, and recreating energy into all forms of Life is known simply as the Source

Spirit Loci: places of water with metaphysical fluidity, where two-dimensional reality, (First and Second Dimensions), intersects with the Third and Fourth Dimensions; the Spirit Loci are theoretically arranged across the planet in the Flower of Life pattern; the Anima metamorpha grows and Salvagers are born at Spirit Loci

The Sub Rosa Forces, or the Army of Thorns: the Imperium’s martial practice of plant magic

Taker: a Commoner who actively (and violently) spreads Disorder

Task: the Anima’s purpose to use her powers to bring humans back into the Sacred Balance preserving all Life, simply called Order

The Third: the river-like movement of time into the past, (the Third Dimension), that Salvagers navigate, (“swim”), when using their Hindsight; the Third begins at the genesis of Salvagers and Shapeshifters; the first two Animas are presumed to have existed prior to this genesis

Warps: Duals corrupted by Disorder; the name also includes corrupted Mages